7719/20660
I am doing all I can not to feel like an old, irrelevant man: having kids late, keeping up with my stupid job, refusing to mature at all, embracing new technology and not turning into a grumpy old cunt who hates new comedians. But today I felt every one of my fifty-six and a half years as I attempted to use my supermarkets scan for yourself feature.
I have traditionally been a check out guy - I will use the self check out machines if I have to, but I prefer to deal with a human being, partly so they keep their job and partly because every 20 years or so they say something that I can get a comedy routine out of. I suppose using the self check out machines is just doing the check out assistant's job without getting paid for it, but scan as you shop is even worse as you're no longer even using the supermarket's equipment - you do it on your own phone (I think you can pick up a scanner on the way in- which might be preferable). So it really feels like you're working for the supermarket, using your own till. And not getting paid. Or any discount as far as I could see.
I did not like it. Not only were some items really difficult to scan, but my shopping list was on my phone so I had to keep moving between apps. Also when I tried to look for aubergines on the weighing machine tey were not there. Did that mean aubergines were free? I finally found out you get charged per aubergine, not by weight and so you have to scan the barcode on the shelf.
Also your trolley holds a lot less if you are bagging items as you go.
I was in a rush which made the unreliability of the whole thing more annoying. Most annoying though was I had told my sceptical wife that this scan and shop thing would definitely be better. But it wasn't as good as using a human check out person. Unless the human is the woman who possibly thinks I have six kids or is possibly just carrying on a sarcastic joke from lockdown.
There was at least no queuing at the end - you pay straight away after scanning a barcode on the self serve till - and no loading out and loading up of groceries. But my bags were overflowing and things kept falling out of the cart. I will never do this again.
I will absolutely do it again (maybe using their scanners) and soon this will be the norm, just as all change conquers us. The worst thing though is feeling like a Luddite who wants it the old way, rather than a fresh young mind who welcomes our robot overlords.
