CES weird: The Kissenger lets you make out, digitally, with your significant other across the internet

It's that time of year again with CES 2017 just around the corner and shit is about to get weird.

Long-distance relationships are difficult because not only is your lover completely removed from your day-to-day life, but you have absolutely zero possibility of tangible physical intimacy. This is sad. Researchers from the Imagineering Lab at City University London think they can solve this problem, however, with their new Kissenger gadget. The device mimics a real kiss using pressure sensors and actuators. It’s purely for regular pecks on the cheek or mouth — no tongue simulation is available. Sorry.

The Kissenger pairs with a messaging app that lets a user send a kiss, so when one is sent, the Kissenger measures pressure on different parts of the sender’s lips to replicate that exact kiss on the recipient’s Kissenger. The lip part of the device is made of silicon. I don’t think it would feel as nice as a regular kiss, but hey, who knows. Maybe a cold silicon device pushing against your lips would feel good if you knew it came from a loving place.

So far, the team has created a functioning iOS prototype that plugs into a device’s headphone jack. This is clearly not future-proof as the iPhone 7 doesn’t even have a headphone jack. But okay still, maybe one day the Kissenger will let you kiss your lover, or your mom, or even your favorite celebrity. That’s a nice thought at least.