Boomf: Marshmallows with your Instagram photos on them

I often get asked to beta-test apps, but I’d never been asked to be a “beta eater” (it rhymes if you pronounce beta the British way!) until earlier this month when Mint Digital asked me if I would try its latest spin-out product, Boomf.

Boomf is a simple idea, just in time for the Christmas shopping rush – it prints Instagram photos on marshmallows and sends them to you in the mail. It’s UK-only for now, though. International shipping is on the roadmap for next year. (update: more quickly than anticipated, Boomf now ships to the rest of Europe and to North America).

You connect your Instagram account to the Boomf website, select nine images, pay £12 ($19) and they’re sent off to your UK address.

So, what are they like? I received a silvery package through the post.

I unwrapped it…

I checked out the nutritional information. They’re not very healthy, but what did you expect? They’re marshmallows.

Inside the box, the marshmallows are wrapped in a plastic bag and accompanied by a card to remind you what photos were on them once you’ve eaten them.

And here they are! They’re 4cm x 4cm squares.

They taste… exactly like marshmallows. They’re all vanilla flavor, although other flavors are apparently being worked on.

Boomf marshmallows are certainly not a bad gift for yourself or an Instagram-loving friend. However, as the Web app for ordering them connects to your Instagram account to access the photos, you won’t be able to use a friend’s photos on their own gift.

This isn’t Mint Digital’s first foray into the world of the Instagram API – it previously launched Stickygram (before selling it to PhotoBox) and Projecteo, a tiny projector for Instagram photos.

➤ Boomf