Self Checkout Nightmare
Posted August 2, 2009 – 4:01 pm in: Interaction Design
Self checkout machines were tested already in 1997. According to NCR, the leading manufacturer of this product, more than 140 retailers from 12 different retail segments and over 20 countries use their solution.
The benefit for the customer is shorter queues but the reality is that these machines can be a usability nightmare. Using the product weight to verify that people do not steal is the main reason for this product failure. The machine often fails to register the item’s weight which time after time display the notorious message ‘Unexpected Item in Bagging Area’
Scenarios like rearranging items to different bags and replacing a damaged bag obviously have not been considered and will require special assistant.
People do not understand how these machines work and get interrupted in the process without getting any feedback how to refrain from making the same error again.
It is actually quite funny to see how many times the assistants are being called for help. I don’t blame them for being frustrated- they are the ones who needs to do the ‘skip item’ action again and again to compensate for bad design.
If you try to buy alcohol, a confirmation from an assistant is required again.
Any loose items without a barcode will require that you identify the product by scanning through all the available options.
I am sure that the manufacturer knows about all these issues which were probably discovered during user testing. It is shocking that although so many people complained about the self checkout experience online and the constant assistant required they are still being used and not taken out to be redesigned.
Tags: self checkout, shopping, supermarket