WIRED Staff
Science

Slideshow: Grocery Checkout, Italian Style

Supermarkets adopt portable scanners that let shoppers total their purchases themselves -- and foil Italian elbow queens who have mastered cutting in line. By Nicole Martinelli. This story is available as a
Image may contain Drink Beverage Alcohol Bottle Wine Beer Human Person Stout Electronics Phone and Mobile Phone
The clunky scanner weighs as much as a soda can, 12 ozs., but you can buy a bottle of wine with it.Nicole Martinelli

See related story: Grocery Checkout, Italian Style

Image may contain Human Person Clothing Apparel and Shop

Line, what line? Non-scanning customers grapple at the checkout in an Italian supermarket.

Nicole Martinelli
Image may contain Human Person Postal Office and Restaurant

The checkout line dedicated to scanner shoppers, completely empty.

Nicole Martinelli
Image may contain Human Person and Shop

Giving the green light to a package of pasta.

Nicole Martinelli
Image may contain Human Person Basket and Shopping Basket

This is a ghost basket. Any moment now, a fur-coated woman will appear insisting she is already in line.

Nicole Martinelli