The moment I started writing this piece, I started kicking myself – I forgot to pick up milk. It’s not like I really had much of an excuse, either; today I spent several hours at Costco, and returned with several hundred dollars worth of groceries. I bought literally everything I needed except that one item. The more I think about it, the more I realize I should have brought a shopping list – I’m sure there’s something else I managed to forget, just as I’m certain I’ll only remember it when I actually need it.
I suppose it’s not that big a deal. I can always go out tomorrow to buy more groceries, right? ‘Course, if I’d had Amazon’s newest gadget, this whole mess probably wouldn’t have happened in the first place.
This stand-alone handheld – called Dash – is basically a remote control designed to streamline the process of buying groceries. Whenever you run out of a food item (or realize you need to order something) simply speak to it or use it to scan the item’s barcode. Anything you scan is automatically added to your Amazon Fresh account, at which point it’s simply a matter of logging in and scheduling a delivery. Do note that in order to to this, you’re going to need to be an Amazon Prime Fresh customer (the service costs $300 per year, and is only available in select cities). Plus, Dash is technically still in beta at the moment; you’ll need an invitation code from Amazon to even use the device in the first place. Currently, there’s no solid release date for Dash.
It’s a shame Dash is only usable for such a narrow cross-section of Amazon’s users. I personally would love access to such a tool; it’d make buying groceries easier than ever before. I mean, I wouldn’t even have to leave the house, I could just scan, order, and forget!
Okay…maybe that’s not such a good thing. I’m enough of a hermit without automating and streamlining my grocery process. I…think I’m going to just stick to the supermarket for now, even in the unlikely event that Amazon expands Fresh to my city. As for the rest of you?
Go nuts. This thing looks awesome.
View in gallery
Amazon Dash | Gallery
