High Tech Shopping Carts Offer Discounts, Ads

An anonymous reader writes "'Imagine walking down a supermarket aisle and hearing a chime as you pass the peanut butter letting you know it's on sale. Or picture reading the local five-day weather forecast, checking the Dow Jones industrial average and finding a new chicken and rice recipe, all from your shopping basket. Souped up with a computer attachment, your shopping cart could become a know-it-all that gives you special discounts based on what you buy or provides news and information as you sail through grocery aisles.' Full story here, and the Cart manufacturer's site here. I might just have to warshop in Moraga today..."

Comments

Grr.....

[GeckoFood]

The first time a shopping cart tells me that SPAM is on sale, I'm going to bludgeon a manager!

Re:Grr.....

[dalassa]

I don't know if this is better worse than what a Kroger's in Durham, NC has. When you go near the vegatables a speaker plays rain noises. When you are near the eggs another speaker clucks and when you are near the meat a speaker moos. How is that supposed to make me buy stuff?

Nagging shopping carts

[tomhudson]

More stupid applications of hi-tech. I can see it now. The earplugs are chiming "buy me, and you wopn't have to listen to the stupid peanut butter anymore".

Shoppings carts with computers..

[MongooseCN]

This gives the side benefit of getting homeless people online.

Re:Shoppings carts with computers..

[_ph1ux_]

back in '99 when all the VC money was flying to anyone with a pulse I tried to start eHobo.com

This was where you could go and get accessories for your carts, get corporate sponsored cardboard housing etc...

We would sell luxury collapsable cardboard condos, a tow strap for your shopping cart that you wore like a backpack (which allowed for hands free mobility!)

for some reason - I couldnt get funding.

How aware of their surroundings will they be?

[teamhasnoi]

When I smash my big rusty shit-van into one at 52 miles an hour will it croak, "Body Work on sale at Dave's this week...helleep meeelee..."

'Cause it's going to be open season on carts that try to sell me shit.

Die, Squeek-Wheel, DIE!

Sweet!

[grub]

[rolling down the aisle]
*beep*
cart: "Your girlfriend needs tampons, see the specials on Tampax in aisle 5."
you: "She does? Already? It seems like yesterday..
cart: "Seeing as you're not getting laid tonight, check out the sale on golf balls in aisle 2."

This could be a great thing!

[Ethanol]

As a friend of mine suggested, if we port linux to run on these things, and work out some kind of wireless net access, shopping carts could become an even more versatile tool for homeless people than they already were.

Re:the real reason

[stratjakt]

You don't care until the you get the wrong shopping cart, and it shrieks, at the top of it's digital lungs "HEY, BACKISSUES OF PLAYGIRL ARE ON SALE 2 FOR A DOLLAR WITH PURCHASE OF LARGE DRUM OF VASELINE"

Happy Vertical People Transporter redux

[Anonymous Coward]

If I came across a basket/cart that tried to inform me in such a manner I would:

a: try to find a basket/cart without such features, OR
b: vandalize the basket/cart so it no longer informed (on) me, OR
c: fill out a complaint form and go elsewhere.

I would refuse to use them for reasons of privacy and aggravation.

The title is a reference to the HHGTTG. These shopping baskets/carts would probably suffer the same fate.

Coward 312-123

Checking your stocks...

[Jippy_]

Actually, it might help with your shopping decisions...

"My tech stocks are doing great! I need some chips."
[check stocks]
"Ohh! Gourmet Potato Crips!"
[check stocks]
"Hmm.. Maybe Ruffles instead"
[check stocks]
"Oh.. This no name brand looks good.. "
[check stocks]
"On second thought, that opened bag in the discount bin might be best..."
[check stocks]
"Dang... Anyone wanna buy a shopping cart?"

Re:the real reason

[TheWickedKingJeremy]

There is no reason why buying preferences need to be stored indefinitely and associated with an individual.

A better way of accomplishing this - if you are putting Gerber baby food in your cart, the computer will tell you that diapers are also on sale because the two items are linked in the store's database. Or, if you are buying the latest issue of Wired, the computer would automatically assume it would be pointless to tell this customer that condoms are on sale in aisle 12. ;)

My point is that advertising can be better focused without having a huge, all-knowing database.

Re:Just what we need

[Angry White Guy]

Shopping used to be so easy, go out - kill something - bring it home and eat it. Now we're faced with people yapping on phones, tight aisles, screaming kids and my favorite - those damn discount cards that I need one of for each store (I have none) so I get screwed on my discount. Now I get beeping carts and weather.

Go out and kill the people yapping on phones, bring them home and eat them. Not feeling too hungry, just take a screaming kid. The stigma that goes with being a cannibal will quickly dissipate when the regular shoppers can shop phone yapping, kid screamin', aisle blocking scum free and we just have to put up with the discount cards.

Wobbly Wheels

[9jack9]

I just want them to fix those wobbly wheels.

How about a map?

[n-baxley]

If I could type in what I'm looking for, and it would blink on the map both where I am and where the item is, I would buy my own personal one and bring it to the store with me. :)

Cool!

[coopaq]

And you were wondering where you could get a free
computer to play your free mp3s!

Just throw the cart in trunk when you take your
groceries out.
Go home and use your 1337 skillz
and mod this puppy to play your music.

-J

Re:Net life + real life = IRONY

[NineBall]

If it's anything like that, I may well decide to pay the people in marketing a visit, and I will have brought my neutron bomb.

Blue Light Special

[docbrown42]

Pr0n on sale, Aisle 2!

Nice Web Site!

[Lizard_King]

The KleverKart web site just gave my team's graphic designer a heart attack.