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posted by martyb on Sunday September 24 2017, @01:23PM   Printer-friendly
from the is-your-fridge-"clean"? dept.

Walmart wants to test "in-fridge delivery" for Silicon Valley customers with August Home "smart locks":

Here's how the test will work: I place an order on Walmart.com for several items, even groceries. When my order is ready, a Deliv driver will retrieve my items and bring them to my home. If no one answers the doorbell, he or she will have a one-time passcode that I've pre-authorized which will open my home's smart lock. As the homeowner, I'm in control of the experience the entire time – the moment the Deliv driver rings my doorbell, I receive a smartphone notification that the delivery is occurring and, if I choose, I can watch the delivery take place in real-time. The Deliv associate will drop off my packages in my foyer and then carry my groceries to the kitchen, unload them in my fridge and leave. I'm watching the entire process from start to finish from my home security cameras through the August app. As I watch the Deliv associate exit my front door, I even receive confirmation that my door has automatically been locked.

While some may find the idea creepy, others have downplayed the creepiness factor:

"Five years ago consumers wouldn't have assumed they'd let a stranger drive them from the airport, much less stay in their house," said Forrest Collier, the CEO of eMeals, a platform that offers shopping lists based on recipes and loads the items into online shopping carts at Walmart and Kroger (KR) . "Now both Uber and Airbnb are billion-dollar companies."

For now, the fridge restocking service will only be available to Silicon Valley users of August Home. Customers will get a notification through their August Home app every time a delivery person drops off their food.

[...] Even though this Walmart service sounds "creepy on the front end," said Collier of eMeals, "it's really not as creepy as letting a stranger sleep in your bedroom."

Also at LA Times, Reuters, SiliconBeat, and CNET.


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  • (Score: 2) by Hartree on Sunday September 24 2017, @06:45PM (3 children)

    by Hartree (195) on Sunday September 24 2017, @06:45PM (#572402)

    "buying groceries is neither particularly strenuous nor unpleasant "

    For most people it isn't.
    You aren't yet elderly, or in poor health. We have an aging population that often can't drive anymore, are limited in physical mobility, otherwise frail, etc. Often elderly don't have a neighbor/relative they feel they can ask to help with that.
    Though it's a niche market, grocery delivery is a definite one. People in those situations who can afford it would be willing to pay more for it. Some such services already exist.

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  • (Score: 3, Funny) by Phoenix666 on Sunday September 24 2017, @07:27PM (1 child)

    by Phoenix666 (552) on Sunday September 24 2017, @07:27PM (#572414) Journal

    You aren't yet elderly, or in poor health.

    Jesus, how hard is it to open tins of cat food? C'mon!

    --
    Washington DC delenda est.
    • (Score: 3, Touché) by jelizondo on Sunday September 24 2017, @11:49PM

      by jelizondo (653) Subscriber Badge on Sunday September 24 2017, @11:49PM (#572484) Journal

      Jesus, how hard is it to open tins of cat food? C'mon!

      Count your blessings! Clearly you are young and have no idea (yet) of the many ways your body can betray you, may you live long enough to find out.

      I had a temporary sickness that made it extremely painful to walk, grab anything or even open a goddamned can of soda. It was over in a couple of days but it made realize how old people feel; and it’s not just the pain it is the sense of impotence and rage that it brings.

  • (Score: 3, Insightful) by fritsd on Sunday September 24 2017, @09:20PM

    by fritsd (4586) on Sunday September 24 2017, @09:20PM (#572455) Journal

    (...) are limited in physical mobility, (...)

    yes?

    and therefore...

    they are AT HOME when the groceries are delivered, and don't need some newfangled lock that other people can open.