Walmart Testing iPhone-Based Self-Checkout System for Retail Stores

[Super20]

Just one more way to slow down your service at Wal-Mart. Did anyone ever try there self-checkout lanes? With all the time I spent at those with a sales person I could have just used a regular lane and not done any work. Total fail.

 

[ixodes]

Walmart
Wallyworld
Appleworld
Applemart
WallysApple
AppleWally
AppWalWorld

Oh...forget about it ...

 

[Renzatic]

Walappworlmart?

 

[TC25]

LOL nice apples to oranges comparison.

Cars have tons of advantages over carriages.
Email has tons of advantages over postal service.
Apple/RIM/Palm are in the competition business, someone has to lose.

What does a self checkout provide that a cashier cannot? Tell me. Other than the anti-social/shy people of the world can avoid any small talk what does a self check-out do for the customer over a cashier? N-O-T-H-I-N-G.

Saves money for the retailer and is faster and most important of all, a scanner can't join a union.

 

[JAT]

What does a self checkout provide that a cashier cannot? Tell me. Other than the anti-social/shy people of the world can avoid any small talk what does a self check-out do for the customer over a cashier? N-O-T-H-I-N-G.

Speed. They fit 2 self-checkouts in the space of one cashier-checkout around here. (speaking of grocery, Home Depot, Costco*, IME) Twice as many people go through the same size store in the same time. That benefits both the store and the customer.

You thought that would be hard? Next question.


* Costco might be more like 1.5x self in the same space. Shape is different, I'd need to actually measure.

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Are you kidding? You can't buy a phone for $200 unless you sign a $1,000+ contract. Inside that kilo-buck contract are loan payments. You pay quite a lot for that phone.

If you are on a low income working for $12 per hour and have two kids you do NOT buy iPhone data plans.

And yet I see poorer people with them all the time. Including their kids. Actually, I most often see them as I am serving them eviction papers, yet they must be paying their cell phone bill.

Poor priorities, I think.

 

[iEvolution]

Speed. They fit 2 self-checkouts in the space of one cashier-checkout around here. (speaking of grocery, Home Depot, Costco*, IME) Twice as many people go through the same size store in the same time. That benefits both the store and the customer.

You thought that would be hard? Next question.

You thought that was an answer?

Space is a corporate benefit, it's not a customer benefit.

Speed of check out is dependent on the customer or the customers ahead of you. They don't speed up the check out process.

They are money savers for corporations by allowing them to hire less employees, self check-outs are of zero benefit to consumers unless, as I said, you are the socially-awkward type person that doesn't like to have any interactions with humans.

Job killers..period.

 

[Rodimus Prime]

Speed. They fit 2 self-checkouts in the space of one cashier-checkout around here. (speaking of grocery, Home Depot, Costco*, IME) Twice as many people go through the same size store in the same time. That benefits both the store and the customer.

You thought that would be hard? Next question.


* Costco might be more like 1.5x self in the same space. Shape is different, I'd need to actually measure.

LOL you think it is faster.
Sorry those machines are SLOWER not faster. it takes 3-4 of them to equal the threw put of 1 cashier

 

[JAT]

You thought that was an answer?

Space is a corporate benefit, it's not a customer benefit.

Speed of check out is dependent on the customer or the customers ahead of you. They don't speed up the check out process.

They are money savers for corporations by allowing them to hire less employees, self check-outs are of zero benefit to consumers unless, as I said, you are the socially-awkward type person that doesn't like to have any interactions with humans.

Job killers..period.

Just because you can't analyze speed benefits properly doesn't mean they don't exist. You sound like you've never seen a line at a cashier. You don't think twice as many checkouts is faster to get rid of a line? Even theoretically it's simple math. The answer is correct, I've experienced it and analyzed it myself in the real world. Sometimes a cashier can be faster for the customer, but more often not.

Also, your hypothetical autistic person would likely have more exposure if they don't know how the self-checkout works. You don't actually have to talk to a cashier, you know. I don't. (pretty sure I know more about social issues than you, too)

LOL you think it is faster.
Sorry those machines are SLOWER not faster. it takes 3-4 of them to equal the threw put of 1 cashier

You two sound like you've never used them. Maybe you have nothing but idiots where you live. Here, the first couple months they were slow as people learned how they work, and the store worked out technical kinks. Now they are much faster for me. (for a few items, 50 items would be different....maybe)

 

[Tinmania]

You two sound like you've never used them. Maybe you have nothing but idiots where you live. Here, the first couple months they were slow as people learned how they work, and the store worked out technical kinks. Now they are much faster for me. (for a few items, 50 items would be different....maybe)

At least one time, while on the 15-items-or-less line with a cashier, I have picked up my stuff and moved it to the self checkout. Why? Because the cashier was busy chatting away with a prior customer after the sale was done. Machines don't do that. I paid and walked out before she was done "working" with that prior customer.



Michael