Do you love playing fetch with your dog but hate the part where you have to physically touch the ball, hold it in your hands, rear back, and throw it?
In other words, do you love playing fetch with your dog except for the parts that involve you playing fetch with your dog?
If so, you’re in luck. Technology is on the case, and the result is that you, the dog owner, can be completely outside the dog-fetching-ball equation, so you can go back to laying on the couch all freakin’ day.
Behold: the iFetch automatic ball launcher:
Of course, automatic ball launchers are nothing new, but the iFetch is the first one that put a little “i” in its title, and that screams technology. It also screams 2005, but don’t pay attention to that.
Admittedly, it does look vaguely Apple-ish, though in an odd way, like the company’s famed designer Jonathan Ive was asked to design an automatic ball launcher after drinking 21 beers.
The best part? It’s on Kickstarter. An automatic ball launcher on Kickstarter.
We’re having some fun with this, but in reality, this thing looks solid. The guys making it have put in some serious time and engineering know-how, and they have important-sounding sentences like this on the Kickstarter page:
“We contracted with d:e for the (truly great) overall design of the product and then with Pump for the mechanical/electronic design. We have proceeded all the way to manufacturing prototypes and product testing. We have production drawings and have initial manufacturing quotes for molds, parts, and assembly. iFetch has patents filed in the U.S. and internationally.”
And it has raised — get this — double its Kickstarter goal. The team now has nearly $50,000 to put toward production, and that number is bound to increase, as the campaign has 21 days left.
It’s also made for indoor use, which is a godsend for people who live in cities.
But, will your dog like it? Check out this video. This dog is having the time of his life. I could stay on the couch and watch this all day.
Via CNET; images via the iFetch Kickstarter page
