Revealed as part of its SITTNING collection for the fall season, the fabric placemat has a convenient stitched pocket off to the side, that’s just right for storing your smartphone. Not only does it keep it out of sight — although the fabric’s see-through enough to show when the screen lights up — but it’ll also keep it free of any food that escapes from your plate.
Ikea doesn’t quite see it the way we do, and says the pocket is there to make sure we don’t look at our phones every two seconds. Promoted using the tagline Logged Out, it certainly could be used that way, but we have a feeling it’s going to facilitate us to continue living our digital lives when we should really be concentrating on the physical one. Of course, there’s no rule to say the pocket is only for a smartphone either, and we’re sure some creative types will use it for a napkin or cutlery, but that’s no fun.
The placemat measures 14-inches by 18-inches, and will cost the wallet-friendly price of just $2 when it goes on sale later this year. It’s not the first time Ikea has embraced the smartphone, having already released a range of furniture with wireless charging built-in, and rumored to be working on an app-controlled smart home system incorporated into a new series of lightbulbs, that may be released later this year.
