There is no denying the satisfying feeling one gets when popping bubble-wrap after unwrapping a delivery, so it is no wonder that the less disposable version of the same thing has become the latest must-have toy on social media.
Similar to fidget spinners that rose to fame a few years ago, pop-its are marketed as stress relievers that aid with anxiety and help children and adults who struggle with maintaining focus.
Made out of silicone, pop-its are basically a tray with ‘bubbles’ or half spheres that one can push through and ‘pop’. Children (and adults) can spend hours popping the toy on one side only to turn it over and pop the other side. It is a vicious cycle really.
Some people even play it in pairs and take turns pressing down any number of bubbles they wish in a single row. The player who ends up popping the last bubble is the loser.
Others add a dice into the mix and whatever number it lands on will determine the number of bubbles one pops.
This makes pop-its different from 2017s most popular fidget toy, fidget spinners, which were basically a small device that users could rotate between their fingers. They were mostly designed for single-player use and did not come in as many varieties as pop-its do.
However, fidget spinners were so popular at some point that schools had to ban learners from bringing them into class, before the trend died down a while later.
Then in comes the new fidget craze.
Pop-its come in a variety of colours, shapes and sizes with the most popular ones on social media being the rainbow circle and a multicoloured unicorn.
Now dubbed this year’s fidget spinner, many may not find pop-its interesting but the over 9 billion views under the hashtag #popit on TikTok, are proof that people love these satisfying sensory toys.
Due to the sudden craze, pop-its can basically be bought anywhere on e-commerce sites like Facebook Marketplace, Amazon, AliExpress and Takealot. The regular sized ones retail from around R60 with the bigger ones selling for about R500 (probably to some parents dismay).
Small businesses have also joined in the craze, like the Australian-based company owned by 10-year-old Pixie Curtis.
According to the company’s spokesperson Roxy Jacenko, Pixie’s Bows started off as a hair accessory company before adding pop-its eight months ago.
Now they are popular for offering a wide range of pop-its for both children and adults, including keyboard-shaped ones and large game board versions of the toy that are big enough for families to pop together.
“We were originally a hair accessory company for children and decided to add fidget toys 8 months ago, the sales have been incredible, often selling out within 48 hours of a product being put online for sale,” Jacenko explained.
She added that even though the toys were initially more appealing to children, adults are also obsessed with pop-its.
“We have customers from three to 85 years old – it’s quite incredible. If you are a fidgety person, then these are for you, even better is the fact that there are so many styles and designs that even as an adult there is something suitable and not too kid-like in the range for adults.”
As enjoyable as these toys seem to be though, a clinical psychologist said they can only provide a short term relief from stress and anxiety.
“Fidget toys can provide short term relief but don't necessarily provide long term stress relief,” said Tyrone Edgar, a clinical psychologist with international training in cognitive-behavioural therapy.
He did, however, recognise that pop-its can be useful to anyone that struggles with stress.
“From a sensory perspective, the touch input is calming. It's also distracting which can create some cognitive relief from the stress of the day.
“They are useful but there are many other ways to cope with stress that may result in better long term stress reduction, such as exercise,” Edgar added.
Whether or not fidget spinners are here to stay is still unknown, but I can’t say I am not tempted to add a few of the tie dye unicorns into my virtual shopping cart.