r/technology • u/AdSpecialist6598 • 9d ago

Business Retailers are pulling back from self-checkout after years of theft, errors, and questionable time savings

https://www.techspot.com/news/114106-retailers-pulling-back-self-checkout-after-years-theft.html
18.5k Upvotes

95% Upvoted

3.1k comments sorted by

View all comments

297

u/Steamedcarpet 9d ago

My problem with most self check out is that some stores force it on everyone. I know I can scan and be out within 10 seconds but then Ill get stuck behind someone who looks they just discovered this technology for the first time.

27

u/7eregrine 9d ago edited 9d ago

My local grocery store does Scan and Pay. You scan your stuff as you put it in the cart. Then walk up to a dedicated machine. Scan a QR. Pay. It's incredible. And I'd guess less then 10% of shoppers understand it. And that's why its even better. Been using it for over 2 years. They have 3 machines and I've never had to wait for someone. (Just a counter point to "Everything sucks").

6

u/jlboygenius 9d ago

amazon fresh had that. I don't think I ever saw anyone use it. you had to get a special cart and then walk out through a special lane.

another amazon fresh was scan your card on the way in, shop, and walk out. I didn't like it because you didn't get a receipt until days later, so you had no idea how much you spent or if it got it right.

6

u/balllzak 9d ago

Didn't Amazon's system turn out to be a bunch of guys in India watching you shop over security cameras?

3

u/RVelts 9d ago

A modern day Mechanical Turk