RFID to Revolutionize the Grocery Shopping Experience

Everything is going wireless nowadays.  Think of everything that can be done on your phone or computer that was inconceivable ten years ago.  Security companies are setting cameras up in homes so people can monitor activity from their phone when they are not home.  Cable companies are allowing people to access their home DVR systems through their phones and computers to watch TV recordings anytime.  The possibilities are becoming endless on what can be accomplished through handheld devices.  Now imagine some of those same technologies entering local grocery and convenience stores to help with the shopping process.

New RFID chips are becoming smaller and less expensive and becoming more accessible for helping everyday consumers in new and exciting ways.  Soon, RFID chips may be coming to local grocery or convenience stores to replace the old bar code system.  How can the simple change from bar codes to RFID chips change a simple purchase? 

How long do people spend waiting in line for something every day?  The answer is too long.  RFID chips placed on products in the grocery or convenience store can essentially eliminate the wait to check out.  RFID chips can be read from any angle and at any point, eliminating the need for every item to be taken out of the cart, scanned and bagged.  The customer can actually bag everything up while shopping, walk through a scanner and be charged for everything almost instantaneously.  These RFID chips can also help the store to ensure that everything bought is up to freshness standards.  

Have you ever had the pleasure of buying an expired product before realizing it was expired?  RFID chips on the essential fresh products like fresh fruits and vegetables, meat, eggs and bread can track how long a product has been sitting on the shelf.  By placing RFID chips on the bags, packaging or stickers that are on these products, the people stocking shelves, store managers and even the suppliers can be alerted when products are going bad or running low and need to be replaced or ordered.  This can eliminate any human error on the supply and stock end ensuring that fresh products are always being delivered on time, in the correct quantities, at peak freshness and that any expired product is taken off the shelf before someone buys it.  By helping this process run as smoothly as possible eliminates cost from mistakes in ordering and ensures that the customer will be satisfied with the freshness of the product.

With our lives becoming more and more technologically advanced, the opportunity to advance the essential process of grocery shopping can be included in this revolution.  By guaranteeing that every product is fresh and stocked will help the customer shorten trips to the store.  Shortening the checkout process can help to clear congestion at the end of the store and eliminate waiting in line so people can get on with their lives.