Waking up to the smell of bacon is a fantasy for a lot of people, probably because it implies that someone has taken the effort to make you breakfast in bed. While this is a common fantasy, it is not a common reality for many of us. Luckily, Oscar Mayer created a device that attaches to your iPhone and syncs with your alarm clock, allowing you to wake up to the smell and sound of sizzling bacon.
This spring, Oscar Mayer ran a sweepstakes giving away some of these devices and guess who won?
Me.
Six weeks later and my bacon alarm clock arrives at my house with this note:
Photo by Lauren Thiersch
What it comes with:
- Very detailed instructions
Photo by Lauren Thiersch
- The device itself (approximate retail value of $40)
- A charger
- A bottle of bacon scent
Photo by Lauren Thiersch
How it works:
1. Download Oscar Mayer’s free Wake Up and Smell the Bacon app.
(Pro tip: even if you don’t have the device, you can download the app and wake up to the sound of sizzling bacon!)
2. Fill the device with bacon scent.
(Pro tip: the device can only hold a few drops of juice at a time. Overfill it like I did, and you’ll end up with bacon scent all over your hands…)
Photo by Lauren Thiersch
3. Plug the device into your iPhone headphone jack.
4. Set your wake-up time.
Photo by Lauren Thiersch
5. Wait.
Once the alarm sounds, the device sprays a cloud of bacon mist into the air.
(Pro tip: Don’t put your face up to the device like I did, or you’ll end up with a face full of bacon scent. It’s not as great as it sounds.)
GIF by giphy.com
Final Thoughts:
- As an Android user, I had to borrow a friend’s iPhone in order to test this, which bothered me.
- The device itself covers the speaker of the iPhone; as a result, the sound of sizzling bacon was hard to hear.
- The device sprayed bacon scent into the air, which made for a short-lived fragrance. It seemed like my face would have to be right next to the phone in morning in order to smell anything.
GIF by giphy.com
Despite these problems, this product was overall very well thought out, and was a great marketing tool for Oscar Mayer. It was really exciting to “win” this product and I’m still happy to have it. The bacon scent of course didn’t smell exactly like bacon but it was pretty darn close. I’d certainly be content waking up to this smell every day.
You can’t deny that this is an epic commercial:
Basically: If you’re a bacon lover, find a way to get your hands on this product. Unfortunately the sweepstakes ended on April 4, and it is not sold for retail sale. Until then, you’ll have to befriend someone who already has it, or simply stick to the real thing. And if you’re curious about why bacon smells the way it does, read up on the science here.