The future of stress relief is now.
In these stressful times, it’s important to find ways to vent. Personally speaking, whenever my butler forgets to address me as “sir,” I swear I’d lose it if I didn’t have a sheet of bubble wrap handy to pinch with my fingers for that ever-so-satisfying popping sound.
However, isn’t it always the way? I quickly run out of sheet before my rage subsides, and its back to the courtroom for me and Willingsworth.
But now I’ve found a way for me to control my anger and not have to pay other people’s hospital bills any more. No, not therapy: it’s ∞ Bubble Wrap AIR!
In this updated version of 2007’s ∞ Bubble Wrap, the experts at Bandai have once again harnessed the awesome power of buttons to develop an electric bubble wrap simulator that can be pushed indefinitely — provided you have enough batteries to last a lifetime.
The five-square-centimeter (0.8-square-inch) unit has buttons that faithfully recreate the size and texture of bubble wrap bubbles. Their patented design traps air to give it just the right yielding pressure.
Pressing the buttons will cause the speaker to omit an authentic PFWACK! sound repeatedly, but that’s not all!
At random intervals one of seven unexpected sounds will also come from the unit such as a cat meowing or the crack of a baseball bat. These little treats help to keep you pressing in anticipation for the next one.
But perhaps it’s the small details that helped ∞ Bubble Wrap AIR win the 2021 Japan Toy Award in the High Target Toy Category. For example, notice how along the edges there are some half bubbles, just like the real thing!
There’s also a place where you can hook on a strap and attach ∞ Bubble Wrap AIR to your bag for some stress release on the go.
However, one point to be aware of is that the volume is quite loud, possibly ten times louder than actual bubble wrap. So, discreet popping during Zoom meetings is not advised.
If that all wasn’t enough, this September a capsule toy version of ∞ Bubble Wrap AIR will also hit machines across Japan with exclusive random sounds like a car horn or dog barking. Given the cutting-edge tech in these things, however, it will be a Premium Gachapon that will sell for 1,000 yen ($9.06) each.
Since the in-store version sells for 1,078 yen ($9.77), that’s still not a bad deal. Sure you can by a few meters of real bubble wrap from a capsule machine in Gunma Prefecture for only 500 yen, but with its infinite supply of pops, you’re sure to come out ahead in the long run. Besides, what price can you put on peace of mind?
Related: Bandai
Photos © SoraNews24
● Want to hear about SoraNews24’s latest articles as soon as they’re published? Follow us on Facebook and Twitter!
[ Read in Japanese ]