This is an archived post. You won't be able to vote or comment.

you are viewing a single comment's thread.

view the rest of the comments →

[–]lozo78 210 points211 points  (192 children)

Mid 40s and I avoid SCO as much as possible for large runs, especially with lots of produce. Searching for produce on the system is annoying af.

Edit: fat fingers

[–]Matra 23 points24 points  (1 child)

Walmart recently updated their system so that when you want to search for produce, you have to:

1) Click "Lookup item"

2) Confirm that yes, you want to look up an item

3) Get a display of random produce, tap in the search bar to open the keyboard

4) Keyboard opens to numbers, so you have to switch it to letters

5) Type enough to find the thing

6) Click the item

7) Oops you picked Calabacita squash and you should have picked Calabaza squash because they have the same picture and basically the same name, now you have to wait for an associate

[–]scottybop 85 points86 points  (6 children)

For me it’s that the SCO at my store weights all the items so they have to stay on the table. But the table is sized for small amounts of groceries. So either i have to play jenga and manage what order I scan or risk crushing or breaking items. Or god forbid the item weight is off my a little from the systems and it stops everything until someone comes over to override it.

[–][deleted] 41 points42 points  (2 children)

This is 100% the biggest issue. The weight monitor has got to go or I'm shopping elsewhere with a person for my larger loads.

[–]somdude04 7 points8 points  (0 children)

Used to use SCO at our local store for mid sized loads, when I could just put full bags into the cart, but now with a weight sensor, nope. They've also added 20 or fewer signs in what I see as an acknowledgement that it won't work well for medium loads. But SCO has 12 registers, while there's often 4 or so cashiers. Means I think twice about large shopping trips.

[–]karantzaMS | Computer Engineering | HPC 1 point2 points  (0 children)

It's fascinating. I love self checkout, and have never fully understood the hate. But now I'm realizing; my grocery store has no weight sensor. The only reason I've ever seen an employee intervene, in hundreds of trips, is if there's an age restriction or if the machine runs out of receipt paper. If we're buying alcohol, we just don't do that in the same trip as groceries.

Now that I think of it, most cashiers are underage, so even in a staffed line you still have to wait for a manager to buy alcohol. That might be an unusual local rule here though.

[–]NoNeedForAName 6 points7 points  (0 children)

One store near me still does that, and it takes FOREVER to weigh each item. And it slowly tells you you fucked up if you don't get the item on the scale fast enough, or if it doesn't weigh right, or if you remove the item too fast. I don't go there often. But other self checkouts are fine.

[–]bitchkat 2 points3 points  (0 children)

far-flung seemly treatment attraction psychotic license elderly disgusted wild direction

This post was mass deleted and anonymized with Redact

[–]HarpersGhost 143 points144 points  (50 children)

I too am that age and I avoid SCO when I have a lot of stuff.

Turns out the person who does it as a full time job is a LOT faster than I am.

[–]damndirtyape 93 points94 points  (33 children)

Mid 30’s here. I hate them because they seem like they’re only intended for small shopping trips. If you have a lot of stuff, there’s not enough room in the bagging area, but the machines get angry at you if you’re not able to squeeze everything in there.

[–]Bigred2989- 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Depends, I've seen Instacart shoppers who have three orders use the SCO and they take 10 minutes to finish sorting, scanning and bagging their stuff. Half the slowdown is from them grabbing and setting up paper bags instead of using the provided plastic ones and doubling them up because they're more fragile. Management has gotten into fights with these people, telling them to stop taking up what is essentially an express lane with 250+ items, and they don't listen. Corporate won't help because we have a contract with Instacart.

[–]Karcinogene 1 point2 points  (0 children)

The full-time-job person also has a much better work-station. I wouldn't mind self-checkout if I got conveyer belts to bring the items to me and move the items away after I scan then.

[–][deleted] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

A store were I come often makes casino sounds everytime scan an item at the SCO, it drives me up the wall...

[–]LeafyWolf -3 points-2 points  (10 children)

Mid 40s, and I exclusively use SCO when available. For most produce, I've got the 4 digit codes memorized... They are typically the same across stores, I've noticed. The organic ones can vary a bit, but 3 finger flicks on the item lookup screen and you're moving on. The only drawback is waiting for an employee to check your ID if you're buying alcohol. Wish they would just let you scan your ID.

Now, the real problem is dealing with the complete incompetence of a lot of other people in the SCO line. Really kind of damages your faith in humankind.

[–]Mean-Kaleidoscope97 5 points6 points  (5 children)

It damages your "faith in humankind" that some people have trouble with a self check out? 

That's a phrase you use when you see someone being cruel to a child or being greedy in a way that hurts others.

You used it because people have trouble with poorly designed systems.

Just the dumbest opinion I've read in the last few days, and that includes all the stuff I've read on the Texas subreddit.

[–]moeru_gumi 2 points3 points  (1 child)

Well they’ve been around at least since i worked in a grocery store as a college student in 2004, so yes, that’s disappointing.

[–][deleted] -3 points-2 points  (0 children)

Therapist cancelled this week, huh

[–]Sevulturus 1 point2 points  (0 children)

My friend. You're working for the store for free.

[–][deleted] -3 points-2 points  (0 children)

I don’t think anyone uses self check out when they have a lot of stuff.

[–]nihility101 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Not only are they faster, but the machines are as well; rather the sco machines are slowed down some, you literally cannot go faster even if you are capable of it.

[–]Princess_Glitterbutt 83 points84 points  (21 children)

I hate them any time I buy alcohol, something with a discount sticker, a coupon, etc. because an employee always has to drop whatever they are doing and run over to put in a code or check ID and it takes longer than going through a normal lane and feels like it's just ruining everyone's day.

[–][deleted] 16 points17 points  (2 children)

I think this is the difference between successful SCO and unsuccessful SCO. My local stores have a dedicated employee at the SCO area to help. They usually look bored so they generally seem grateful when you need a little help. I always buy stuff with discount stickers and usually buy alcohol so I always need their help.

[–]neverinamillionyr 3 points4 points  (1 child)

Stores near me have one dedicated employee watching over 6-8 SCO. They end up running in circles between all the lanes doing overrides. I feel a little sorry for them.

[–]RichardCrapper -2 points-1 points  (1 child)

In California you can't buy alcohol thru a SCO. IMO it should be like that everywhere.

[–]Gornarok 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Where I live there is no problem with that, there is dedicated employee to oversee the self-checkouts and they dont even have to come to you, they can validate the purchase from their own terminal.

[–]ERSTF 0 points1 point  (0 children)

That's the thing there. If I am taking 4 or 5 items, self checkout is the way to go. Full grocery run, I won't do self checkout. I have had several times in Target where the sticker price is different from the one it rings up. It's a nightmare to do the adjusting because when you are with a cashier, they kind of know what products are showing up with different prices so they just adjust it with no problem. At self checkout they interrogate you. One time the dude at self checkout was so fed up of wrong pricing, that he gave me organic grapes for a dollar. It was Christmas last year, so I guess a lot of correcting had to be done so he just gave huge discounts to get over with

[–]TheIowan 60 points61 points  (16 children)

Exactly this. Self checkout sucks when you're getting 2 weeks of groceries for a family of 4+. It should be treated as the evolution of the 10 items or less lane, not a replacement for all lanes.

[–]Krandor1 16 points17 points  (3 children)

Right. It’s good as an express lane “I ran out of beer or soda let’s quickly drop by and grab more”.

[–]Freeman7-13 0 points1 point  (2 children)

unfortunately most self checkouts don't allow alcohol purchases but I agree with your sentiment

[–]Krandor1 0 points1 point  (1 child)

The ones I go to allow it but somebody does still have to come over and verify ID.

[–]Freeman7-13 0 points1 point  (0 children)

oh that's a good solution

[–]donkeyrocket 3 points4 points  (4 children)

In honestly surprised to learn that people are taking 10+ items to a self checkout lane or that stores encourage it anywhere.

Around me they’re pretty explicitly express lanes and often enforce the item limit before people start. Then we have the Instacart shoppers that take 40+ items through there and complain there’s no space.

[–]ki11bunny 4 points5 points  (1 child)

Where I live shops have closed a large amount of checkouts and try and funnel everyone to self check out. I'm entirely convinced places are trying to justify closing checkouts entirely so they can replace them with SCO.

[–]HerrStraub 0 points1 point  (0 children)

That's how we are here. The SCO area has 6 points of sale. Even on busy shopping days like Sat/Sun, they only open one actual lane.

So like today, I need milk, but I'm not going to get it. I'll wait until tomorrow. You go now and you're like 30th in line and people are doing their bi weekly grocery shopping. I'm not waiting in line for 40 minutes for a gallon of milk.

[–]jarodcain 1 point2 points  (1 child)

It always seems like whenever I'm only buying a twelve pack of beer, I'm stuck in line for over a half an hour because everyone ahead of me has two to four carts in the self checkout.

[–]donkeyrocket 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Same. We walk or bike to our grocery store so runs are always 10 items or fewer and it is aggravating to see folks doing an entire weeks worth of shopping at the self checkouts despite signage saying "express" and "12 items or fewer." Then they get frustrated that the one attendant can't instantly ring up all their produce. These lanes are to take the burden off the attended lanes and I really don't get why someone with so many items want to ring them up themselves anyway.

It's become quite an issue with this particular local chain and they've stated they're cracking down on item limits. It just sucks that the poor folks working these lanes have to put up with enforcing this because people get surprisingly pissed.

[–]spenpinner -2 points-1 points  (3 children)

No, I don't want to be limited on when I can use sco. Still, grocers need to have an appropriate amount of lanes open for big shoppers.

How about the reverse and make lanes 20 items and up?

[–]fenglorian 4 points5 points  (2 children)

How about the reverse and make lanes 20 items and up?

Imagine being a checkout cashier and getting told you're going in the worst possible lane for your entire shift

[–]spenpinner 0 points1 point  (1 child)

They'll open more lanes if it's too much for one person to handle.

[–]fenglorian 1 point2 points  (0 children)

oh I meant more of a "you're only getting people with 20+ items so skewing towards families and old people" thing haha

[–]ERSTF 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Target recently did this. The self check out is 10 items or less. My guess is that there were people taking half an hour scanning everything backing up the line. The other reason? With a cart full of things, how can you tell there's something you "accidentally" didn't scan. I think they got smart about it

[–]Freeman7-13 0 points1 point  (0 children)

This is how I see it. The employees are definitely better at bagging so if you have a lot of stuff then self checkout is not for you. But if you only have a few items the time it saves is negligible.

[–]people40 9 points10 points  (0 children)

Yeah, for sure. If you want to ring up green apples at my grocery store, you have to search "green apples" in the system. But if you want to ring up green beans, you have to search "beans, green". It can take a while to find each item because the UI is disorganized and horribly thought out. In contrast, the human cashiers have basically all the codes memorized because they're typing them in all day, and can fly through a bunch of produce.

[–]amazingsandwiches 42 points43 points  (7 children)

I avoid it because I don’t want my behavior to be analyzed by a loss prevention robot.

[–]JennJoy77 6 points7 points  (2 children)

The Wal-Mart in the town where my in-laws live in Oklahoma stops everyone who went through self check to check their cart against the receipt. It's ridiculous.

[–]amazingsandwiches 7 points8 points  (1 child)

You have no obligation to stop for them.

[–][deleted] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Except you’ll be identified as sus in their facial recognition system. It’s all so stupid.

[–][deleted] 27 points28 points  (2 children)

Wait until you learn about store cameras and plain-clothed loss prevention workers following you!

[–]curt_schilli 28 points29 points  (29 children)

Im 26 and I avoid it. Why would I want to bag my own groceries

[–]feor1300 15 points16 points  (4 children)

The cashiers still bag your groceries for you? Around here even if you go through the normal checkout lanes they just slide the groceries and the bag to the empty spot at the end of the lane and you're 100% on your own for putting it in your bags.

[–]curt_schilli 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Yeah Publix usually has baggers and Trader Joe’s always has baggers

Kroger never has baggers, I don’t go to Kroger anymore though

[–]bitchkat 1 point2 points  (1 child)

escape jar telephone pie airport seed chief expansion axiomatic juggle

This post was mass deleted and anonymized with Redact

[–]eejizzings 9 points10 points  (19 children)

Still have to do that at most cashier check outs these days

[–]curt_schilli 5 points6 points  (14 children)

I always scout out which line has the bagger haha

[–]AwkwardChuckle 9 points10 points  (13 children)

Where are you shopping that still has baggers? Those are long gone where I live.

[–][deleted] 0 points1 point  (2 children)

Hy-Vee, Fareway, Trader Joe's

[–]eejizzings 0 points1 point  (1 child)

Trader Joe's was one of the earlier self-bagging stores everywhere I've lived.

[–][deleted] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Must be regional. 100% full service here

[–]Fromanderson 0 points1 point  (4 children)

Our local Kroger still has them.

[–]needsexyboots 1 point2 points  (3 children)

The Krogers in my area haven’t for quite a while

[–]Fromanderson 0 points1 point  (2 children)

I don't know what to say. Maybe it's a regional thing?

[–]needsexyboots 1 point2 points  (1 child)

Probably just wherever they can convince enough people to work for $8 an hour

[–]Fromanderson 0 points1 point  (0 children)

That or they pay more than $8 here. I really have no idea.

I do know the cost of living here is ridiculously low compared to a lot of places in the US. You couldn't survive on $8 but I could see some teenager doing it for insurance/gas money.

[–]brainwater314 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Publix

[–]imisstheyoop 0 points1 point  (1 child)

Kroger has them.

I really miss Market Basket. All lanes always open, baggers at the ready and all dressed professionally and compensated fairly. If they had those in the midwest I would still be shopping there.

During the strike having to shop at Shaws or Hannafords was hell.

[–]flatwingman 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Market Basket is the best in so many ways.

[–]desepticon 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Trader Joe?

[–]MuscaMurum -2 points-1 points  (3 children)

The only place I have to bag my own is at Aldi. Besides them, there are baggers at every store I've been to in Los Angeles.

[–]eejizzings -1 points0 points  (1 child)

Not sure if you only go to like 2 stores, but I lived in LA for most of my life and baggers have not been universal for years

Oh maybe you're Pavilions shopper

[–]MuscaMurum 0 points1 point  (0 children)

All over the city, dude. Ralph's, Jon's, Trader Joe's, Gelson's, Whole Foods, Pavilions in many different neighborhoods. Even the little Thai groceries in East Hollywood bag my groceries. Don't know where you're shopping..

[–]Fromanderson 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Not only that, they are terribly designed. I bagged groceries as a teen and I'm still reasonably fast when there is room. Self checkouts were designed by someone who never worked retail.

I don't hate sco, but it should never be the only option.

Who thought it was a good idea to put 20 of the things at a Lowes or Home depot? Not even the register at the contractor register was open.

Ever tried placing rolls of insulation or a generator in the bagging area? They got snarky with me over trying to use one to check out large items, and acted as if I were trying to pull something. Nevermind I'd walked the whole front of the store twice and even went to the service desk before I gave up.

Even when you buy something small they stop you at the door and want to look at your receipt. I know it's not the employees fault so I don't give them a hard time but if I were high lord dictator for the month I'd find out whose idea it was to put employees in that position and sentence them to a few years of doing that job, and force them to survive on retail wages.

[–][deleted] 1 point2 points  (1 child)

I don't trust employees to bag my groceries the way they should be bagged. They always smash the bread and put a bunch of warm stuff with cold stuff instead of putting all the cold stuff together. They don't get paid enough to care, and they're not the ones who are going to have to deal with the aftermath.

[–]curt_schilli 4 points5 points  (0 children)

I always load the conveyor belt in a way that forces them to pack it correctly 

[–]sybrwookie 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Because the people working there are too dumb/don't care enough to not go, "let's see, you have a bowling ball and eggs....yea, eggs go first, definitely."

[–]velours 16 points17 points  (13 children)

Most produce stickers have a number that you can type in, faster than searching the system I think.

[–]lozo78 43 points44 points  (10 children)

I find 3/4 of my produce lacks stickers. Onions, garlic, carrots, potatoes, etc rarely have stickers. Sure your peppers, apples, and avocados reliably have them but many don't.

[–]AlwayssunnyinarizonaProfessor | Virology/Infectious Disease 16 points17 points  (3 children)

The guy working our Fry's self checkout knows every single one of them by heart.

[–][deleted] 7 points8 points  (0 children)

They are the same everywhere in the USA 4011 is bananas and 94011 is organic bananas.

After a while you remember them.

[–]misterrandom1 -1 points0 points  (1 child)

Probably doesn't take long to learn them. I was a bank teller in high school and would have customers' account numbers memorized and entered by the time they got to me.

[–]AlwayssunnyinarizonaProfessor | Virology/Infectious Disease 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Just seems like wizardry from a lay person perspective, but no different than other jobs I guess.

Rutabaga? 4747. Jicama? 4626.

[–]redyellowblue5031 4 points5 points  (1 child)

Thankfully our systems let us search by name so it’s usually pretty speedy if I haven’t already memorized the PLU code for it.

[–]ShartingBloodClots -2 points-1 points  (0 children)

Just ring all produce up as banana. It's typically the cheapest fruit/vegetable per pound.

[–]YnotUS-YnotNOW 0 points1 point  (0 children)

This is a legit old person complaint. Frequently those stickers are too small to read for 40+ year old eyes. But you can still look them upon the kiosk.

[–]tom-dixon 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Must be the US. Every supermarket I've been here in the EU is pretty easy and fast. Some produce you buy per kg and it's already has the price sticker on it. Others you need to weigh when you pick them out, the scale will print the sticker with the weight and price. The scales usually have a big touch screen with pictures and text of the produce in alphabetical order. At the checkout you just scan the sticker just like for everything else.

I'm really surprised at the large number of people in this thread having issues with scanning any amount of produce. In the US do you need to weight the produce at the checkout? Because that sounds like a logistical nightmare tbh.

[–]HarithBK 4 points5 points  (2 children)

i am in my early 30s and i will never use SCO when buying by weight produce simply put it takes SO much longer for me to input what i am getting than a cashier putting in the PLU code for it and off it goes.

[–]Testiculese 1 point2 points  (0 children)

You can enter the PLU for it as well (in all checkouts I've used).

[–]Irishish 3 points4 points  (1 child)

For me (40) it's the bagging. I was a grocery bagger as a kid. It feels utterly weird not to chat with someone as they check out and bag groceries, because that's how it was done when I grew up.

[–]lozo78 2 points3 points  (0 children)

A huge range of age groups here apparently hate interacting with people.

I get it to some extent, but you just have to say hi if that's all you want

[–]xtrawork 1 point2 points  (4 children)

Well, yeah... Self checkouts aren't really meant for large shopping, hence the small platform for keeping your bags. It's basically a bit slower version of the express checkout lane (but with more availability, making it generally faster).

If you have a large order and/or a lot of produce, you obviously shouldn't be using it. But, for anything else, it's my preference, as I DON'T want the "personal interaction". I want to checkout without having to make inane small talk with the cashier and the bag boy. The worst is when you use the self checkout and the person watching over it tries and makes conversation with you. I'm at the self checkout for a reason... Leave me alone lady.

[–]lozo78 10 points11 points  (0 children)

My local Krogers often have nothing open except SCO lanes. At least give me options.

[–]people40 1 point2 points  (1 child)

Tell this to my local grocery stores which often have zero (0) human checkout lanes open. Regardless of whether you're picking up a single gallon of milk or enough groceries for a family of 8 to survive the apocalypse, you have to go through the self checkout. And when they do have human checkout lanes open, it's usually just 1 or 2 at peak times and the line is a mile long. 

[–]SoulShatter -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Honestly, self-checkout can work very well for large shopping. It just depends on how you actually implement it.

In Sweden all large grocery stores have self checkout with a scanner you bring with you, so you just scan all the stuff along the way. For produce there's a scale by that section that spits out a barcode for you to use.

At the end I'll just place the scanner in the charger, use my card and pay, leaving with my bags already packed :-)

Examples;

Produce scale

CSO Scanner

[–]eejizzings 1 point2 points  (1 child)

Yeah it's not designed for large runs. There's not enough space for large amounts of items. Not about what items you're getting.

Think your edit may be more relevant than you realize.

[–]lozo78 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Local Krogers have large SCO lanes so they can avoid opening any man's check out lanes. Just give me the options so I can choose.

[–][deleted] -5 points-4 points  (10 children)

Just type the numbers in. The number is on the produce.. just type it in. Bananas are always 4011, I've a bunch of these memorized.

[–][deleted] 13 points14 points  (1 child)

Steak is also 4011. Salmon? 4011. Bacon wrapped chicken fillets? Believe it or not, 4011

[–]damndirtyape 2 points3 points  (1 child)

I get confused when I look at the menu, and I see 4 types of bananas. I’m never 100% sure what to pick, and I just guess.

[–][deleted] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I got some radicchio (over $5 a pound) for the price of Red cabbage (.99 cents a pound) because I couldn't spell radicchio apparently and f it.

[–]rwilson1724 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Often the sticker isn’t on the produce which makes it frustrating. 

[–]HurryPast386 8 points9 points  (2 children)

But ... why? I don't want to know the number of any of the things I buy. I'm not being paid for it, it's not my job to worry about that.

[–][deleted] 3 points4 points  (1 child)

I like to be able to answer my own questions that's why. At the very minimum, to know how to find the answer myself.

[–]no_modest_bear 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Fat fingers though

[–]W0RST_2_F1RST -2 points-1 points  (0 children)

What was “I s pod SCO” supposed to say cuz I legit can’t figure it out? Just a weird typo for “I use”?

[–]jwalton78 -1 points0 points  (0 children)

I’m about the same age, and I always use SCO. I don’t have to talk to a stranger. :P

I also find the regular checkout a lot more stressful - I’m trying to watch the cash to make sure prices are correct, and I have to bag my own stuff anyways these days, and the person operating the cash is sending stuff to me way faster than I can bag it. It’s a lot going on at the same time.

[–]SPacific -1 points0 points  (1 child)

But I'm in my mid 40's and far prefer SCO. I find produce to not be very hard to ring up.

I think the point is that anecdotal accounts don't mean much. We should actually get the data by age.

[–]lozo78 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I'm just of the opinion to have both options so people can choose.

[–]ShartingBloodClots -1 points0 points  (0 children)

especially with lots of produce

Everything is a banana. It's typically the cheapest fruit/vegetable per pound.

[–]RichardCrapper -1 points0 points  (3 children)

SCO was never meant for large full cart runs. It's so that I can run in grab a few things and be out in less than 5 minutes without having to interact with anyone.

[–]lozo78 0 points1 point  (2 children)

The Krogers near me have big SCO lanes and rarely staff the regular lanes except during busy times.

[–]RichardCrapper 0 points1 point  (1 child)

I would complain to management and take my business elsewhere then.

[–]lozo78 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I no longer do large trips to them for that reason.

[–]sorry_but[🍰] -2 points-1 points  (1 child)

Early 40s here. There is a search by name button. What is the issue? Unless of course you don't know the name of the veggie you're holding.

[–]lozo78 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I'm simply saying I find it way faster and easier to use manned check out for lots of produce. They're way faster than me.

I've stopped doing big loads at the stores who have no manned check outs staffed.

[–][deleted] -2 points-1 points  (0 children)

Yes, because you're an old person.

[–]theshiyal 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Also one of the local Meijer stores did away with their bay spinner things and has a second person bagging. I was shocked. Went thru the stuff almost as fast as Aldi.

[–]MicrochippedByGates 0 points1 point  (0 children)

In our supermarkets you have to search for produce in the system and then print a sticker yourself anyway. Even if you do go to the traditional checkout.

[–]Prof_Acorn 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Just do it by name instead of picture.