By Julian Goldsmith, 26 January 2009 17:17
Microsoft has taken the wraps off a new retail showroom at its Redmond headquarters.
The facility, opened earlier this month, serves a number of purposes: to show retail customers Microsoft-developed technologies that can be deployed in their stores, as well as steering them in how to best merchandise Microsoft products to consumers.
At the entrance to the showroom, shown here, a number of key technologies are on display including digital signage and electronic point of sale (Epos) systems.
According to Tim Gruver, director of technology and strategy for worldwide retail at Microsoft, RFID tracking has been deployed throughout the centre and the Epos units are capable of reading the track-and-trace tags, alongside conventional barcodes.
Photo credit: Microsoft
Comments
There are 3 comments. Join the discussion
1. Simon Allen
"... reading the track-and-trace tags"
What are these?? Not RFIDs by any chance?
2. anonymous
Well almost no retailer has any money left to spend in the current financial climate, so the show-room will be empty.
Half of my Retail/EPoS customers are still trying to squeeze the last drops of value out of Windows NT !!
3. Karen Challinor
so in the middle of a world recession microsoft pioneer a flagship store that requires almost no staff to run it as it is so automated
so all these people with no jobs, they'll be rushing to the store as customers, with dole cheque eagerly clutched in hand, ready to buy the latest version of windows instead of unnecessary fripperies like food, clothing or a place to stay will they