Holiday Gift Guide »

Wal-Mart to release “Scan and Go” app and make cashiers obsolete

Categories: Applications
By: , IntoMobile
Monday, September 3rd, 2012 at 11:57 PM
Wal-Mart to release Scan and Go app and make cashiers obsolete

Wal-Mart is testing out a new app that can reduce the number of people the retail chain employs. The so called “Scan and Go” app will allow customers to scan products they’re buying while in the store and then simply pay for the goods at a special desk. At the moment, the company’s employees are playing with an iPhone app, but we’re sure Android version is in development, as well.

Going forward, the next step would be to integrate some mobile payments mechanism in it and make the process completely hassle free, eventually removing cashiers from the picture. It is said that these employees cost Wal-Mart as much as $12 million per second so it’s no wonder the company wants to do something about it. Then again, we’re not sure firing all those people is the part of the solution, at least when we look at the economy in general. What do you say?

[Via: WSJ]

About The Author

Dusan Belic

Dusan has been using smartphones since their introduction and is now following the latest trends in the industry. The "convergence" is what he's most excited about, and writing about it is the next logical thing to do. He thinks that using a smartphone is what everyone who cares about their time should do. In addition to his interests in mobile phones, Dusan also loves to experiment with the latest web and mobile 2.0 services. The idea of accessing and managing your information from any device no matter where you are simply amazes him. Whether it's an online to-do list, note taking service or a video sharing social network, he's there to try it out. He admits though, he's still searching for the ultimate web-based organizational tool, which "sings" perfectly with the mobile PIM application. Dusan used to run SymbianWatch.com which later became part of IntoMobile. He lives in Serbia, South-East Europe, from where he edits the site on a daily basis.

  • Olivia

    What about people who don’t own a smart phone – or even the few who do not own any kind of cell phone??  How are these people going to be able to purchase anything??

    • http://www.facebook.com/people/Quintus-Murray/1469036783 Quintus Murray

       no one cares their numbers are so low they MUST get a smartphone no excuses are acceptable. Smartphones will become so cheap there will be zero excuse for not having one

  • http://twitter.com/Chompes Ivan Sanchez M

    in a short term technology almost everyone will own one smarth phone, the big issue i see as the author give us are all the employees not just on usa but around the world going from being consumers to unemployes and i assume while some people might find this useful the social responsibility about the empolyes lost will end up hitting walmart

  • http://www.facebook.com/fordhamwt Fordham Terrill

    Why not make a grocery cart that is a Faraday cage. All of the items have rfid chips. You place your phone inside the border of the cage. Every item you put in confirms that it’s yours when you put it in. You pay, transfer to bags or a standard cart. If an item hasn’t been paid for when it leaves the store, an alarm rings. 
    Problem solved.

  • Tom

    Technology will eventually wipe out all jobs.  This is a small step in that direction.  I can’t say I agree with cutting jobs out of the economy, but the idea of being able to “scan and go” is pretty sweet.