This ‘Magic Wand’ Lets You Order Food with a Quick Wave

If you don’t feel like cooking, can't stand the thought of calling a local pizza spot's landline, or lack the will to order food via the wacky World Wide Web, you still have options, you lazy, lazy human.

One regal, Mariah Carey-esque hand gesture is now all it takes for your favorite takeout food to show up at your door, at which point you can greet the delivery person with whatever occult-sounding exclamation you wish, maybe “Sectumsempra!” Does this scenario sound, uh, kind of wild? Well, it's one that British delivery service Just Eat appears to be banking on, as they promote their “magic wand” takeaway ordering system.

In a symphony of tech buzzwords, Just Eat says that the 3D-printed food wand is turned on with the press of a button and a simple wave, “The Wand then communicates with the Just Eat app using cutting-edge Chirp™ soundwave technology. It transmits an encrypted sound signal, like a ‘sonic barcode’, to the mobile app triggering it to order your favorite, last order via Just Eat.”

So the plastic cone, which you can keep on your coffee table or in the pantry or in bed or wherever you need it most, sends a signal to your phone which is then bounced to the restaurant via the app, all based on your previous orders on Just Eat.

But the real magic here is the claim that this gadget can make a meal taste even better, which, yes, they are making. Just Eat even got an Oxford food scientist who's worked with Heston Blumenthal and Ferran Adrià to back up that claim, with some Harry Potter imagery thrown in for good measure.

“Fun improves your mood which enhances your taste of the food," Oxford University psychologist Charles Spence says in the press release. "A wand has a special place in our psyche, thanks to the popularity of magic shows and Harry Potter. It appeals to our inner child and evokes happy memories. Anything that makes your mind happier, makes your taste buds happier."

Whether this becomes a viable replacement for the old-fashioned way of doing things, like staring at Seamless for two hours unsure of what you want or repeating your pizza toppings over and over to an ornery old man on the phone, remains to be seen. What we do know, however, is that sadly, the magic of cooking—or at least the time and will to cook—seems to be fading for many.