Trying to figure out an easy way to convert your oldschool printed money to Bitcoin? Try the Bitcoin ATM, a tiny computer that takes your dollars, euro or other currencies and instantly converts them into Bitcoin.

The Bitcoin ATM first prompts users to use the machine to scan a QR code on their cellphone, teaching the ATM where to send the Bitcoin. Users then insert paper money, which is instantly turned into Bitcoin and delivered to users' accounts. All told, the process takes fifteen seconds or less.

Lamassu, the startup that created the the Bitcoin ATM, claims it's the world's first such machine. They initially demonstrated the gizmo earlier this year, and now Lamassu expects to take their first pre-orders in early June. The Bitcoin ATM, a production mockup of which appears below, will cost approximately $5,000 with cheaper deals for wholesalers.

Instead of taking a slice of each transfer, Lamassu's business model is primarily based around selling the devices to vendors and distributors.

Zach Harvey, who along with his brother Josh Harvey run Lamassu, said they invented the Bitcoin ATM because "it's not as simple as it should be to transfer" between traditional currencies and Bitcoin.

"The problem with transferring something digitally will always be the fiat currency," said Harvey. "So right now if you wanted to open an account with MtGox, you've got to wire them funds and the registration process can take up to 30 days. As of now, they have a really large queue for registration, which at one point was 16,000 or 20,000. So it actually takes a pretty long time to get registered to these online exchanges."

The Bitcoin ATM also came to be as a solution to Bitcoin's middleman problem. Right now, banks are capable of shutting down the accounts that Bitcoin exchangers use to turn old currencies into Bitcoin. Harvey says Lamassu's machine takes care of that.

"You're taking the banks out of the way, you're taking the middlemen out, so it is a more decentralized way of doing it," he said.

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The idea of decentralization — getting banks and even the popular Bitcoin exchanges out of the picture — is a key part of Harvey's philosophy towards Bitcoin.

"Instead of having one exchange or several exchanges that everybody goes through, if you have these machines as pioints all over the world, that would make the exchanges way more decentralized," said Harvey. "And, in fact, if the vendors were using their own Bitcoin and weren't necessarily connecting to an external exchange, that would make it even more decentralized. You could even have someone in South America or Africa or Europe or anywhere, and he would just buy one of these machines for his bookstore or restaurant, and he wouldn't need to use any middleman at all."

Harvey, who has "a lot" of his life savings in Bitcoin, added that he's not concerned about the recent intense flutuations in Bitcoin's value.

"It's just part of the process of learning about this incredible new technology and trying to figure it out," said Harvey, who also argued his ATM could help stabilize Bitcoin. "It's a roller coaster ride, and it's too much for some people."

Would you use an ATM to turn your cash into Bitcoin? Share your thoughts in the comments below.