Slashdot Mirror
Walmart Wants To Deliver Groceries Straight To Your Fridge (consumerist.com)
New submitter Rick Schumann writes: Walmart has a new marketing idea: "Going to the store? No one has time for that anymore," Walmart says. They want to partner with a company called August Home, who makes smart locks, so a delivery service can literally deliver groceries right into your refrigerator -- while you watch remotely on your phone. Great, time-saving idea, or super-creepy invasion of your privacy? You decide. Here's how the company says it would work:
1. Place an order on Walmart.com for groceries or other goods.
2. A driver for Deliv -- a same-day delivery service -- retrieves items when the order is ready, and brings them to the customer's home.
3. If no one answers, the delivery person can use a one-time passcode that's been pre-authorized by the customer to open the home's smart lock.
4. The customer receives a smartphone notification when the delivery is occurring, and can choose to watch it all play out in real-time on home security cameras through a dedicated app.
5. Delivery person leaves packages in the foyer, then brings the groceries to the kitchen, unloads them into the fridge, and leaves.
6. Customer receives notification that the door has locked behind them.
1. Place an order on Walmart.com for groceries or other goods.
2. A driver for Deliv -- a same-day delivery service -- retrieves items when the order is ready, and brings them to the customer's home.
3. If no one answers, the delivery person can use a one-time passcode that's been pre-authorized by the customer to open the home's smart lock.
4. The customer receives a smartphone notification when the delivery is occurring, and can choose to watch it all play out in real-time on home security cameras through a dedicated app.
5. Delivery person leaves packages in the foyer, then brings the groceries to the kitchen, unloads them into the fridge, and leaves.
6. Customer receives notification that the door has locked behind them.
Delivery driver, making minimum wage and being treated like shit by Wal-mart, then tells his friends about the shit he saw in your house and 3 months later you get robbed. No thank you. What the fuck are these companies thinking and how fucking lazy are people? I'd only allow this if I was rich as fuck and had hired help to do this. Which at that point, they would be my employee, well compensated and not some untrustworthy Wal-mart meth head employee. But then the rich have been doing this for centuries already.
Smart locks are exactly the opposite too. If it's connected to the internet, it's hackable. End of story. Not to mention, a simple kick and the door opens anyway.
What about pets? Will they make sure to keep the door closed so the cat or dog doesn't bolt? Will they refuse to enter the house if there are pets?
What about grabbing something small in the fridge or elsewhere in the house? Does everyone have 360 degree surveillance in every room of their house now?
What about disputing the purchase if you don't get the things you bought? Something missing, wrong items etc.?
What about delivery guys taking pictures with their phones while they're in your house to, off the top of my head, either shame you on the net for old appliances, dirty dishes in the sink etc., or maybe to plan a future burglary now that they have ACCESS TO YOUR HOUSE to look around?
What about just doing your grocery shopping yourself? Is the world really so stressed now we can't do that?
-=This sig has nothing to do with my comment. Move along now=-
What about the fact that all this is unnecessary if you put a secured, padlocked cool box (possibly even one with active cooling) outside your door and let them put the groceries in that? It's probably a lot cheaper than installing a smart lock plus video surveillance throughout your house and has no security implications. It might not keep them cool all day in the summer but if you arrange delivery for a 3-hour window before you return home it should do fine. Milk used to be delivered door-to-door in the UK and it was fine for an hour or so with zero refrigeration or insulation.
Of course this solution does not involve high tech locks, flying drones, autonomous delivery trucks or robots so it's clearly less amazon-y but who knows, perhaps it might work?