Amazon rolls out smart shopping carts at San Mateo Whole Foods, letting you skip checkout line

SAN MATEO, Calif. (KGO) -- Amazon is rolling out its latest version of smart shopping carts at Whole Foods stores.

The carts track what you're buying as you go, allowing you to skip the checkout line.

The Whole Foods in San Mateo will be the first in California and sixth in the country to deploy the new technology.

"We've designed this cart from top to bottom with the customer in mind," said Natalie Banke, an Amazon spokesperson.

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In order to start using it, customers are given the choice to log in to their Amazon or Whole Foods Market app using a QR code.

"And it scans, signs me in. It knows it's me," Banke said.

Then, after signing in, it's as simple as putting a few bags in the cart and start scanning.

"Just make sure the scanner hits it before you put it in the bag and you'll see on the screen. Red cherries, these are 16 ounces, these are on sale," she said.

As for produce, the cart has a built in scale, which weighs as you go.

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"It has sensor fusion technology, which is really -- it knows the weight of everything, so the entire cart has a weight sensor. So, when its paper bags, your own personal items, produce that's weighed by the pound and charged by the pound," she said.

Shoppers will notice the cart has a built-in screen, showing customers a real-time receipt of all items in the cart, essentially turning this into a personal self-checkout on wheels, which even lets you search where certain items are in the store.

"You'll see it tells you where I am in the store. I'm in the specialty foods section. It is in aisle five, so I can look at the aisles, or I can look at this map," she said.

Then when you're done shopping, you skip the checkout line and leave the store using the designated dash cart lane.

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"And all you do is walk out," she said.

Payment will be automatically processed using the credit card associated with your account.

The smart carts are optional for customers and Whole Foods will still have regular shopping carts and checkout lanes open for those who prefer it.

As for the possibility of this hitting other Whole Foods Markets across the state, Amazon couldn't comment on the timeline.

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