Amazon Go

My first thought is: I don't have a supported smartphone.

The current checkout process entails the acceptance of common legal tender, but this process will require I have their app, and presumably allow it quite a bit of tracking permission.

A cool demo, sure, but I think I'll stick to shopping like the normal folks.

It's interesting that they talk abut a supported smartphone. If it was just computer vision looking at what you grab you would only need a printed card with the QR that the folk in the video uses to check-in.

So, probably there's something needed from the phone as well: NFC, low energy Bluetooth, inertial location tracking? I guess that we will see when we look at the supported devices list.

If there's two things I get uneasy about, it's (1) giving up privacy in a whole new category of being filmed/monitored/tracked and (2) being guided into behaviors that encourage me to consume more and consume more casually.

The left-wing viewpoint on this is going to be that it's an economy that increasingly works against low-income/homeless people (who are less likely to own a smartphone or always have it charged and on them). Sure when it's a one-off, no big deal, but if it lets a store have lower prices and provide a better customer experience, then more and more stores will adopt it.

If you've ever entered a grocery store, both of those things have already happened.

It's imperfect and unable to be completely avoided, but worse to move the line further in the wrong direction.