Kiosks introduce a touch of glass

Touchscreen pilots rolled out in the aisles

Touchscreen technology finally looks as though it is coming of age with the kick-off of pilot installations at Sainsbury?s and at Job Centres throughout the country, writes Guy Clapperton.

One key factor in the technology?s increased take-up is price. In the past couple of years, the screens have come down from #6,000 to #2,000, according to supplier Systems Integration.

Sainsbury?s will entice its Reward Card customers to touchscreen kiosks by offering discounts on their check-out bills. The kiosks have been designed by US-supplier Inter-Act and will be installed in 10 Sainsbury?s and three Savacentre stores during a three-month pilot. ?Inter-Act has put 3,500 units into all of the major supermarkets in the US, so we know people use them,? the company said.

The Job Centres? Jobseeker terminals, supplied by ICL, will total 88 by the end of the month. After a pilot scheme in Chippenham 18 months ago, a formal evaluation showed that 68% of people preferred to to look for jobs using the terminals rather a noticeboard. Ninety-seven per cent felt the terminals were easy to use.