So, I got a Pop Scope sample to play around with a few days ago and it’s a pretty cool little peripheral for those of you with normal-sized smartphones looking to take some cool selfies or other arty shots and have them look as if you’ve either got super-long arms (or a friend helping you out). This cool little device is a tripod/reach extender that’s lightweight, simple to use and supports phones up to 170 grams (5.99657 ounces… oh, let’s say 6 and get that out of the way). Pop Scope works with any photo timer app (there are a number of free to download timers available for iOS and Android phones), extends from 6.5 to 21 inches and its swivel head can tilt up to 90 degrees, allowing you to get a few formerly impossible angles when you’re out and about by yourself.

Setting up a Pop Scope is fast – just clamp your phone (with that timer app installed, of course) into the holder, pop out the legs, place it on a flat surface, adjust the height as required and you’re all set. As it’s made mostly of lightweight materials, it’s not something you’ll want to whip out on a really windy day. But as the song goes, (warble) “On a clear day, you can see forever…” While it works quite well (and yes, some curious people WILL ask you what you’re attaching to your phone when you use this), if you’re a big tablet user or have one of those fancy curved screen phones, you’ll want to hold out and see if the folks at Pop Scope can whip up something for you in the future. I’d gather they’re looking into that, but for now, the company is going to be running a Kickstarter starting August 21 for this model, expected to sell for around $44.99.

Poke back at that link above around then and if you’re smiling because you’re now thinking of some really cool ways to use that Pop Scope, well… it’s your move.