So today is your birthday and you decide to celebrate it only with the closest friends in a bar. The trouble is that the others are posting birthday wishes on your Facebook timeline and for each of them, the chair you’re sitting on gives a hug. Creepy yet?
I’m always offline on my birthday, at least on Facebook and on the IM clients that I use. Of course, after the day passes, I reply to all the happy birthday posts I get on my wall. Some people forget altogether (even some that I considered close up to that point) while others are more personal and decide to give me a call instead. The birthday wishes on the personal timeline are definitely something nice, and it’s great to know that people remembered about you, but wouldn’t it be even better if those wishes were somehow translated into hugs? Fortunately, the Outback B-Day Chair takes care of that.
Unfortunately, this social media experiment only takes place in Outback Steakhouse, so don’t expect to get hugs wherever you’re celebrating your birthday.
The way this works is quite simple. After entering Outback Steakhouse, the feted person is invited to sit in a chair at the head of the table. Next, they are asked to log into an Outback mobile app with their Facebook credentials. The app will generate an automatic Facebook Timeline post asking your friends to start posting Outback B-day wishes. When this happens, LEDs light up on the sides of the chair, silver tinsel shoots up from the top of it, and a couple of robotic hands that seem to have crossed the barrier between cartoons and reality start feeling you up. I’m kidding, this is the moment when girl or the boy in question gets the free hugs.
If you thought that’s the end of it, there’s more! Each time the feted person gets a hug, a picture is automatically taken and posted on his or her timeline. That way, the ones who made the wish become aware that the feted one has acknowledged it. The main strong point of this chair is that it helps people connect in a unique manner on such a special day even if they’re on different continents. The downside? It’s still a tad creepy!
If you liked this post, please check the Facebook jacket that lets you feel the likes through a hug and this hugging robot.
