I tend to avoid auto-cashiers. It's mostly because I find they don't save any time, and just exist to fire cashiers.

One place that they basically force you to use it, is my local drug store (big chain, that I won't call out by name).

Their auto-cashier absolutely sucks. It's almost impossible to avoid having an issue that requires you waiting around for the poor schulb to come over and fix.

They recently set up touchscreens, at the prescription counter.

I have not once had success with the touchscreen. It can never find me, or my wife. They always have to just take my information manually.

I suspect that the backend (the algorithm and main engine) is good. I think almost all the problems are with shoddy frontend stuff. For example, I think the touchscreen issue is capitalization, and the old system cut off our surnames, so I actually have to type in about half my name, in all caps, to have it find my prescription.

I feel personally offended, when I encounter stuff like that.

I have never used these auto-cashiers or whatever they are called. It might be due to anxiety, which is weird because social encounters should be more anxiety-inducing. I just feel like I would mess something up.

Oh, and here real cashiers usually scam you by scanning the items twice and so forth (not sure if intentionally or not), it happened a couple of times to my parents (not considered elderly yet) in the past few months I would say.

In any case, I feel your pain.