Instagrams!

A peculiar lunch-box sized device called Instaprint popped up at insider events from the Grammy Awards to South by Southwest last year — spitting out Instagram photos into the physical world. Now its creators are working on bringing the box to the masses.

“Holding a physical photo in your hand is something that’s been lost over the last years,” explains Michael Lipton, the co-founder of Breakfast, the four-person agency that created Instaprint. “Nobody probably wants a shoebox of 1,000 of these things, but if they’re at party and can walk away with one, then it’s a nice keepsake.”

Breakfast calls itself a “physical-digital interactive agency.” You may be familiar with some of its projects: It built the blimp for Conan O’brien that automatically checked into Foursquare venues as it floated over them and a tweeting bike for Livestrong. As a side project, Instaprint fit with Breakfast’s agenda perfectly.

The wall-hanging box prints Instagram photos from events as they’re posted. It finds photos using the event’s hashtag, includes likes and comments when it prints, and uploads the collection to a website for browsing later.

It has a similar effect to handing out disposable cameras at a wedding — everyone takes photos, but they get pooled in one place. Meanwhile, guests walk away with a physical artifact.

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