When it comes to Amazon, you’ll never have to worry about leaving your wallet at home when you’re back at the grocery store. The company is currently testing its palm scanning payment technology – where you literally pay by hand – Amazon One at a Whole Foods location in Seattle, Washington. According to The Verge, Amazon plans to expand to seven more stores in the Seattle area later this year.
Customers interested in using the payment option can register at a kiosk in the Seattle Whole Foods location on Madison Broadway by connecting their credit card to their palm scan. They can also connect their palms to their Amazon Prime accounts for Prime discounts at Whole Foods stores.
Amazon rolled out Amazon One technology last September and used it in Amazon-branded stores, including Amazon Go and Amazon Books, in the Seattle area. However, joining Whole Foods is the biggest expansion yet, and the company told The Verge that thousands of customers have already signed up.
How exactly does it work? The technology analyzes the lines, ridges and vein patterns of the palm of the hand, which in theory increases checkout speed and makes check-out contactless – something customers may appreciate more due to the pandemic.
However, the technology doesn’t make the checkout process at Whole Foods completely contactless as it does at Amazon Go. A business partner must still scan the items and ask the customer to pay.
“We wondered if we could help improve experiences like paying at the checkout, showing a loyalty card, entering a place like a stadium, or even working,” wrote Dilip Kumar, vice president of physical retail and technology at Amazon, in a blog post. “That’s why we designed Amazon One to do just that – a fast, reliable, and secure way for users to identify themselves or authorize a transaction as they seamlessly move through their day.”