A Shell garage in Holloway, north London, has hosted a six-week trial of a futuristic new self-service till which scans an entire basket in one go.
Customers using the system place their basket on a scanning platform and it displays a full list of the contents on a screen. They open a smartphone app and tap the device on a reader to deduct payment from an account linked to a card app, such as Apple Pay or Android Pay, and are then emailed a receipt.
The till has been developed by IBM as the centrepiece of its “shop of the future”, and the tech giant claims it is 15 times faster than standard self-service checkouts and could render barcodes obsolete, as it uses tiny radio frequency ID chips embedded in the packaging of each shopping item.
A store supervisor told the Islington Gazette: “They [IBM] came to our garage and asked us to do it. The customers are happy with it.
“It’s a good thing, a new technology and a lot of people are interested in it.”
The pilot will be followed by the opening of a “connected” concept store full of the smart checkouts and other gadgets.
An IBM spokeswoman said: “Over 130 customers have trialled the live environment in a Shell store in north London, with very positive feedback.
“The trial was designed to build both the retailer and the customer into designing the experience and it’s an exciting step forward for the industry.”
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