The lowly shopping cart - and other stuff

I agree, Andy. Not only that, I don't like putting cash or credit card into that machine. Ever try to argue with a machine? It makes IRS bureaucrats look like a bunch of rollover wimps.

I think everytime someone completes a transaction, a light goes on at corporate and some dork goes "Aha! Got another one".

No Vonny, I'm not talking about the tills where you have to scan everything through yourself. Total waste of space those things.

I believe it's called Fast Scan in Sainsburys, and it's where you scan your shop reward card (Nectar in this case) at the entrance and it gives you a scan gun.
Then, as you go round, you scan each item as you put it in your bags which are in the trolley (cart).
When you reach the tills, there are specific fast scan tills allocated, where you hand the gun to the cashier, she blips it on the doo dah and tells you how much you have to pay (you already know this because the running total shows on the gun as you shop - another advantage)
You then hand him or her the coupons which are knocked off the bill, you pay and then go.
No emptying the trooley onto the checkout belt. No repacking back into bags, just in, pay and out.
Usually, from point of arriving at the checkout with a big shop, to leaving the checkout is usually about a minute or two per fast scan customer.

As far as shoplifting is concerned - the system builds in a random check every now and then called a re-scan, which is an inconvenience, but they usually chuck a member of staff your way to unpack and re-pack for you.

I would never go back to the handling three times shopping system again.
Fast Scan is much faster.

Andy, it's everywhere the same, you can't stop progress.

Now you see, I would love to have that here too!
We do have a problem though with alcohol and people buying it under 21 -
so the self scanners don't scan alcohol, you always have to see a cashier for
that, but it's a small token of inconvenience.

As far as the alcohol thing is concerned, it flags up that alcohol is among the shopping, and it is up to the checkout operator to determine whether I am over 18 or not.

I've not been queried lately, amd am seriously thinking about changing my face cream.

If the checkout operator is doubtful, he/she will ask for ID.


Here's a Tesco fillum about its fast scan system. Not quite as good as Sainsburys, but Sainsburys isn't on yootoob.

Yes, that's what I am talking about, I'd love to have this here.
The U.S. always prides itself to be the most advanced nation and here a simple shopping trip proves us otherwise.

Yes! I'd love to have a hand scanner as I shop too.

BTW Jane, didn't lordy look good in that video?

When they first introduced self scanning stations at stores, people were hesitant at first, but now everyone uses them if they're just buying a few items.

I imagine at first some people would try to take advantage and not scan things, but that would change. I think it would be a good thing.

Oh, from my initial video, there was something that really makes me laugh. Have you ever noticied how most people have to keep a death grip on their carts at all times? They may have to reach way up, or lean over, but they are NOT going to release their cart. No idea what they think is going to happen. Some masked marauder might run up and make off with their cereal and english muffins?

this drives me nuts

I tend to buy in clumps - lots of whatever one time and then lots of something else another time. In the good old days <play violins>, you could pick up 24 cans of whatever, leave it in its packaging, and pay for 24. Now it all has to come out of the packaging to scan the 24 items separately. So 24 separate scans AND I have 24 loose cans instead of 1 pallet of 24. Pisses me off big time.

I refuse to acknowledge it as 'progress.'

Is it me, or has paying with your credit card become more complicated?

Today I went to both Walgreens and Pet Smart.

Ok, they've got the rewards program, so after you swipe you enter your phone number. That's ok, no biggie.

Then, it just seems to take 10 more steps to get to the part where you actually approve payment.

Do you want to donate a dollar to the poor starving hamsters?
Is this debit or credit?
Is this the correct amount?
Do want your receipt printed or emailed?
What size bra do you wear?

"They" seem to have moved the choices around on the screen also, so that where you used to press "ok" on the right, it's now on the left, or vice versa.

Funny that you say that. I used to leave my cart at the beginning of the isle and just take what I need by hand and go back and put it in the cart. It works mostly, but a few weeks ago, I was almost finished shopping, my cart was really full when I left it at the corner and walked down the isle to check some ice cream. It took me a while to get the right kind and when I went back to my cart, it was gone! I searched the entire store for it, it was gone! I was so mad that I just stormed out without any groceries.......

Many times I have other stuff in it because people think it's their cart, or they take stuff out for the same reason. It happened so often, that I am having a firm grip on my cart now too, I no longer leave that sucker out of my sight.

Probably some over eager clerk was busily putting your stuff back on the shelves.

Yes, I dislike that too! Without reading glasses, I can't see too well and all these buttons you have to press when all you want to do is pay. Many times I hit the "cash return" button and it asks me how much money I want. Then they put a cover over the numbers, so no one can see you entering your PIN number - including myself.
It's a war zone out there no wonder I hate shopping
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@Roger, yes you are probably right. So many stores don't want carts standing around and just take them and restock everything.

Exactly. A cart left unattended is considered to be a cart abandoned. Best to stay close to your purchases at all times.

Especially if you've already scanned the contents, eh?

The trouble with the designer trolley is that it didn't look conducive to outdoor barbies, so not as popular around here as it might have been otherwise.

If only those baskets had had wheels they could have almost walked out the door (local major mart had all 100 of their combo wheelie baskets mysteriously disappear).

As an aside, surely front loading combo washer/ dryers are popular with those that live in apartments?

I disagree. If the job can be done more efficiently by machines, then having a human do it is wasteful. We just need to become comfortable with the idea that in a few decades, machines will have put 50% of people out of work.

I do agree with roger, though, and would never voluntarily pay a machine. They are (1) dumber than people, and (2) treated as if they were infallible. It's a bad combination. I've been short-changed too often by ATMs to seek out new opportunities to be short-changed by a machine.

One time at the ATM, the notes were minty and stuck together so much that I was overpaid a lazy 50, ever since it's my go to machine.

And anyway, the ATM'S often have more personality than the tellers; and who cares about economic advantage and people in need of subsistence jobs, when it comes to the hunter gatherer check out.

Good point about the tellers. Still, I just love having a real person to browbeat.

You guys are too somber .

This is much more entertaining !
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VjjHNiF8OKc