FretPen Is the Tiniest Guitar You Will Ever Play

The urge to RAWK OUT really can hit at any time or place, but who wants to be that weirdo who's always lugging a guitar around?

Now there's FretPen, which makes even your hipster ukelele look big and clumsy.

Pop off the cap, snap the ball-point end into the guitar body and pluck the tiny string; a Bluetooth-connected smartphone acts as a wireless amp that can make a host of sounds, from clean acoustic to dirty garage.

Since there’s only one actual string, you also need to play a directional pad on the body to move across the strings, which isn’t all that hard for a seasoned player. Though FretPen is too small to create actual string vibrations — electronics in the fretboard recognize your finger positions instead — its external materials are just like a real electric guitar. The fretboard is wood, the frets are steel and the string is also the real deal:

(And yes, it’s actually a functional pen, so you can jot down those epic lyrics you channeled from the cosmos during that face-melting riff.)

You can’t buy the FretPen just yet; the Colorado-based makers just launched a campaign Monday on Kickstarter. But you can pre-order it there, with delivery expected sometime in November — just in time for your huge tour (of the waiting area at the airport gate during holiday travel).