Store Scanning Devices vs Apps

A short piece in the Boston Globe which notes that Stop & Shop is still the only major company that is generally providing in-aisle retail scanning.    I worked in this area for years and we experimented with the design of such devices in the lab.   These ideas ultimately led to the Modiv design.   Which now also has a Smartphone based system.  But retailers were always reluctant to take on the care and feeding of new devices without clear returns.  Now with the advent of Smartphones, there is room for the shopper to own the cost.   See Aislebuyer for another  example, developed by a former colleague, Andrew Paradies.