HP Fuels Kids' Imaginations This Christmas with Innovative AR and Series of Printables

HP is bringing kids’ cardboard creations to life with a new Instagram lens. The Magic Snowmobile is the first in a series of printables designed to enhance imaginative play at home.

There’s an old truth that kids love playing with the boxes their gifts arrive in almost more than the gifts themselves. And this holiday season, HP - in partnership with creative agency Goodby Silverstein & Partners (GS&P) - is launching an Instagram AR lens that takes that cardboard-and-paper playtime to a fantastic next level.

The lens launches with the Magic Snowmobile - a headlight illustration that families can print out and stick to a box, fort, couch, chair or other crafts that kids have designed at home. Open the lens and point it toward the headlight, and a winter scene then animates around the kids, complete with snowfall, sound effects and even a snowman buddy who glides in and snowboards next to the family.

“We wanted to use technology to bring families even further into the imaginative play that happens with their paper crafts—especially at this time of year,” said Nathan Shipley, head of GS&P Labs. “Speaking as a father of a toddler, there’s nothing like the joy of this kind of play, and this experience is meant to surprise and thrill not just kids but parents too.”

“We are always looking for new ways for printing to be valuable in people’s lives,” added Ladd Martin, HP’s head of global marketing, print hardware systems. “When combined with AR, this printable can help parents see and share the imaginative world we all know is already in their child’s mind. The Magic Snowmobile is a holiday gift for families - in a year when we could all use a little more delight.” 

GS&P and HP hope to develop more printables to work with the AR lens next year. Click here to check out the HP Magic Snowmobile.