The vision of Italian inventor Antonio De Rosa and his Socialmatic device seems to be edging closer to reality (2014 in fact) after he announced a partnership with C&A Licensing LLC, a company that licenses the Polaroid brand.

Socialmatic is a physical camera, its appearance based on Instagram’s iOS icon. Until now, it was merely a concept for a web-enabled 16-gigabyte, four-inch-wide instant camera that uploads images to Instagram before printing them out using an on-board printer.

“This mix of hardware and software, together with our brand new photo social network will fill the gap between virtuality and reality,” says De Rosa.

Socialmatic has zero association with Instagram, despite modelling its appearance on its SLR camera logo, plus a QR code link to your Instagram account once you print – De Rosa is merely riding the wave of popularity the app has brought consumers.

Adding the Polaroid endorsement to the mix, Socialmatic has avoided legal loopholes and is instead forging ahead as its own patented brand. It will retail for an estimated US$350.