Self-service checkouts

Linnaete

Linnaete

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Anyone here used them at least once? Do you actually feel that these checkouts actually improve your shopping experience, making the whole process of making off with your groceries swifter without the need to wait behind some old people for about five minutes before being able to empty your basket or trolley onto the till? Or are they in fact just nightmarish things that give you unnecessary problems and actually slow you down considerably?

Admittedly, I've never used one. I've seen my mother and boyfriend use it, and on the occasions when I was there with either one of them, the dreaded "unexpected item in the bagging area" sound would come up, as well as the occasionally stubborn barcode reader that doesn't seem to want to scan your items until after about six or seven frantic attempts. So anyway, anyone here actually enjoy using self-service checkouts at the supermarkets and regularly use them? Or do you avoid them at all costs, for whatever reason? Maybe you've used one before in the past and you were beleaguered with enough problems that it put you off from using them ever since?

I don't really dare use them. I'm never really confident with myself when I try and get these sort of things to work and I'm usually awful when it comes to technology I've never really dabbled with before. It should be a straightforward process, but I'm just too wary of the negative stories I've seen about them and I honestly would prefer to continue doing what I normally do, that is, having the checkout assistant - a human presence - there even if he or she is unsmiling and looks unsettling.
 
I much prefer the self serve checkouts to the ones with the wanker who stands behind it looking miserable like they've got the worst life in the world.

Not only can I get in and outta there at the speed of light but I don't have to deal with the awkward "hello... How are you..." Conversation you feel like you have to have with the checkout assistant. I don't care how they are and I am fairly sure they don't care how I am.

Also I think checking out my own stuff kind of makes shopping fun :grin: I enjoy pressing the buttons on the screen...though I am simple like that... :sad3:

Edit: I will probably mention that if I go on a BIG shop I would rather a person than a machine, because things could get complicated. What I wrote above I was really thinking about a shop of like 12 items or less or something :wacky:
 
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i quite like them defo when your in a rush.. like going out to raid tescos on a 15 min break at uni :D scanning all the items seem to be sooo much fun... but i'm sad and don't get out much.. but apart from that their are pretty cool.. also you don't have to look at the ugly checkout woman... or man :hmph:
 
I'm not autistic, so I've no problem swapping pleasantries with whatever peasant is serving at the till. I use the self-checkout when I have hundreds of coppers though. They come with a chute that counts the money as you poor it in to pay, without charging a tariff, unlike machines that exist solely to count your money
 
I really don't like them most of the time.

I've used them around five times and most of the time it takes longer then if I were to wait in a huge line and then get served by an actual cashier.

The stupid automated voice that says there are too many items in the holding bay or whatever shits me off and the whole process is just tedious for me.

If I was only getting one item it might be okay, but when I go shopping I do a proper shop. I'm not one to go to the shops every day just to grab a bottle of coke or a chocolate. If I do ever get those things, it's always within the one shopping trip or two that we make every fortnight.

It's annoying if something scans at the wrong price as well. Then you have to go and find someone to fix it, whereas the cashier chick/dude would have already fixed it for you if you were going through a normal checkout.

So yeah I prefer getting served by a human, even if I don't like faking a smile and saying that my day has been good etc etc etc.
 
hohoooooooooo i love these machines.

No slow service. The only thing about them that can be annoying is when buying anything with an age certificate it calls for assistance so the clerk has gotta come over and have a look at you, verify your age and ask for ID etc.
Like conor said aswell they have funnels that count change which is fantastic when you wanna pay with shrapnel but dont want anyone to know your paying with shrapnel.
 
Okay, i love using these whenever i run into them, but that's pretty much few and far between since i live in sich a rural area. I mean, i guess all the high school kids have to have someplace to work. :mokken:
The last time i used one was in 2008 when i was on vacation. I remember it kinda being funny that i was shoving 20s into a dolar bill slot, like on a soda machine. XD and of course, i loved the scanning your own items, but now that i do that at work a lot, it's lost its thrill.
And Lew: they should make an ID scanner for those machines for that problem. At work, when someone's buying an age-restricted product and we card them, we just scan the barcode on the back, and if they're old enough, it approves them. That would solve all the hassle. :griin:

And Manic: could you please not use the term Autistic like that? I get what you're saying, but at the same time, i kinda find it offensive. =/
 
On most occasions, I haven't any trouble with them at all. A nice clean in and out jobbie. Sometimes however things don't go so soothly and quite often at the worse times (i.e. "I fucking need be somewhere! Like Now!!"). The amount of times they fail to scan first time, having to re-insert my cash because it didn't accept them and the worst "Unknown Item In Baggage Area" voice (No there isn't, you stupid machine with a stupid stupid voice!!).

They also need to be quicker when I need a quick escape, after I get caught swimming in the Ice Cream aisle at stupid o'clock, in the early mornings. I'm a stoned drunken twat not a criminal.
 
I made the mistake of using one once when they literally first came out here at one of the grocery stores and the thing locked up on me mid purchase...so someone had to come help me, turn the thing off, and ring me up in a regular checkout. So I can't say that I've ever used one again...or that I'm too crazy about the idea :wacky:

I'm sure they've most likely worked out any kinks with them by now, but I really don't mind saying hello to someone and etc... at the checkout as long as the lines aren't ridiculously long. ...and If the lines ARE long chances are I have a ton of things to check out (I only really go grocery shopping once a week) so I would have to stay in a regular checkout because I don't feel like bagging groceries forever anyways.

...and on a side note, the way I see it, is people really need jobs, and the more of these we get the less jobs people might potentially have so the whole idea of it is just a bit off-putting :damon: ...I know its not the best job to begin with...but with the way things are, a job is a job right now.
 
Stella Nox Fleuret said:
I made the mistake of using one once when they literally first came out here at one of the grocery stores and the thing locked up on me mid purchase...so someone had to come help me, turn the thing off, and ring me up in a regular checkout. So I can't say that I've ever used one again...or that I'm too crazy about the idea :wacky:

I'm sure they've most likely worked out any kinks with them by now, but I really don't mind saying hello to someone and etc... at the checkout as long as the lines aren't ridiculously long. ...and If the lines ARE long chances are I have a ton of things to check out (I only really go grocery shopping once a week) so I would have to stay in a regular checkout because I don't feel like bagging groceries forever anyways.

...and on a side note, the way I see it, is people really need jobs, and the more of these we get the less jobs people might potentially have so the whole idea of it is just a bit off-putting :damon: ...I know its not the best job to begin with...but with the way things are, a job is a job right now.
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I think they have gotten better. I haven't had much trouble with them recently (much...).

The whole 'job' thing is a good point too, which is true across all manner of jobs. Replacing human workers with machines, just to increase profit. One of the many, many overlooked reasons of the current global 'recession'.
 
I use them exclusively. Mainly because I don't fully understand all Scottish accents, and I feel like a dumbass if I have to go "hmm?" or answer a question wrongly because I didn't get what they were saying.

I disagree with the jobs argument, for the very simple reason that if that was a valid argument, we would not be having this conversation at this time. We would still be pretty much Amish, that's the best example I can give.

There's nothing inherently wrong with the Amish lifestyle, because it is a conscious choice they made. However, halting technological progress globally because "dey tukken our jawbs" would mean we would all be forcibly Amish. That is something I strongly disagree with.

What happened during the industrial revolution when factory workers were out of jobs? Sure, same kind of reaction, but eventually they adapted and became machine technicians.

The problem with today's job market is not so much the automation of jobs, but more the fact that employers are (understandably) hesitant to hire older workers (this can happen from 40+ even though 40 is nowhere near "old" - forget about it if you're 60+) almost regardless of qualifications. They want someone that, resignation notwithstanding, can work there for several years to become an expert at what exactly it is that business needs.
 
nearly every time i use these i have a mini rage. i almost always have to wait for an assistant

PLEASE PUT YOUR ITEM IN THE BAG

I FUCKING HAVE DONE

It annoys me when it wont let me skip bagging (wili's are fuckers for this) when im buying cat litter and i KNOW it will spaz out about the weifght and ive gotta wait for an assistant

they do my head in, but i cba taking my headphones out so i use them
 
i'll use them if I'm just getting a couple things that are easy to scan and assuming there's a line at the express aisle.

Also, when I have to pick up something personal that I'd rather the cashier and whoever else is in line ahead or behind me stand and gawk at. Like when my wife sends me out to get her tamp...............er, I mean get myself extra large condoms.....
 
I use them sometimes.

Like everyone else, it depends on the total amount of items and what they are.

They can make things faster or make it the slowest day of your life. Whenever I use big amounts of money I always choose a person because forgetful me always leaves my change and I lost 80 dollars once that way. :sad3:
 
i don't think i've ever used a self service machine and not gotten into an argument with it. they always tell me there's an unexpected item in the bagging area. i think the woman who lives in them has it in for me and just wants me to lose it one day. :hmph:
 
It usually depends with me as well. If I have a small amount of items, I'll usually self-service because it's faster that way but if I actually have a large amount of items it's easier and faster for me to just let a cashier do it because it'll just take just as much time putting it in the bags as it did scanning it. So I may as well get someone to help me speed the process along a bit.
 
I love self-serve checkouts, I normally only buy one or two things, that's why I use it. Also I don't have to wait in lines where customers are buying lots of stuff, so I use self-service checkouts to save lots of time.
 
I don't mind these half as much as many seem to. If it's the quickest thing to use, I'll use one - but I'll put my shopping in a pile on the weighing platform and bag it later; the machines always make a fuss when I bag the item first. :hmph:

I'm also a fan of scanning my own items and using the touchscreens... It's fun when the supermarket isn't busy! :D
 
I don't think I've gone to anything other than a self-service checkout when there's been the possibility of going to one. It's much quicker scanning your own items then having to wait in a queue for 10 minutes only for them to scan everything slowly anyway. Plus I always find paying much quicker too, especially when you're paying via card and wanting cashback. The only irritating thing is having to wait for an assistance swipe their card to buy alcohol since there's 1 assistance for like every 12 self-service checkouts although I only get ID'd now and again these days. /old

I prefer self-checkouts everyday of the week.
 
I've actually never used one. I've seen them on TV, but that's it. I would like to use them, not only do they look cool, but you also don't have to deal with annoying people doing it for you. I'm willing to try anything that will get rid of having to deal with those people.
 
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