Taiwan-based retail solution that could compete with Amazon Go

The Taiwan-based Institute for Information Industry (III) has come up with a retail industry solution that could potentially rival services like the Amazon Go.

The product that they have is called Hi Magic, which is a barcode scanning stick that can be used by customers at a store. Speaking to asmag.com, Brian Wang, Product Manager at the institute explained how the solution works.

"When a customer comes to the store, they can use the stick to choose the product they want to buy and scan the product barcode," Wang said. "This would enter the item into the customer's shopping cart. And when they are done shopping, they can go to the checkout counter, where they can see the products they have chosen, edit things it like change the quantity etc., and receive the product."

When the company initially thought about the concept, they saw that there were a lot of smart retail solutions out there. But even with those, they found that some aspects were still very difficult because the retailers were still concerned about the number of sensors that should be put in place if these solutions are to be effective. For example, a solution like Amazon Go would require quite a few devices that are tuned to the solution to provide the required results.

Retailers would consider the costs of installing modern smart retail solutions and then decide whether it is worth installing them. This is where an organization like III shows strength.

The most important issue in this, according to Wang, is the sales checkout. "We dont want customers to queue up in a really long line, waiting so long," Wang said, adding that in countries where there are an aging population, where mobility is a major issue, a scanner like Hi Magic revolutionizes the retail practice.

"Every product now has a barcode. So we can connect legacy systems, to get product information management into our platform."