The art of making a grocery list is imperfect at best. Though regular grocery getters have it down to a science, most of us never make a trip to the store without forgetting a few necessary items. It’s only after pouring a giant bowl of Fruit Loops that you realize you forgot the milk; and plans to make pasta can easily get scrapped when you find that - though you bought spaghetti - you never grabbed the sauce.
But a new invention may help individuals create more complete grocery lists. Retailing for $399.00, the Ikan is essentially a bar code scanning device for the kitchen countertop (it can be set up on an included stand, attached underneath a cabinet or wall-mounted). Say, for example, an individual drinks the last of the orange juice - he or she would simply scan the item under the Ikan until it beeps. After consulting its database of over one million products, the Ikan displays on its LCD screen the name and description of the product (for example: Simply Orange original pulp-free orange juice). With an internal wi-fi antenna, the device then automatically adds the product to your personal grocery list on the Ikan Web site. If there is no container to be scanned but a person wants to add something to the list, items also can be added through a voice recorder on the machine or by logging on to the Web site. Before going shopping an individual can print the list, or, better yet, the list can be sent to affiliated grocers who will prepare and deliver all your items for a small fee.
While it may seem ridiculous to a lot of people to spend $400 for a device that does something they could do with a pen and paper, modern technology is all about finding ways to make even the smallest tasks easier. Additionally, the makers of the Ikan also tout the environmental benefits of the gadget. Whenever an item is scanned, the Ikan tells a person whether the product container is recyclable. The idea is to keep people better informed of what they can recycle, and, hopefully, encourage them to do so. The company also claims the device can help prevent spoilage and waste by keeping people from buying more than they need or things they already have. Furthermore, by optimizing grocery trips and offering delivery service, Ikan hopes to reduce the number of trips people make to the store – in turn reducing vehicle emissions and personal gas costs. Another, inadvertent bonus for consumers is that using the delivery service eliminates impulse buys, which may help people to eat healthier and save a little green.
But while the convenience and environmental benefits of the Ikan make the concept seem worthwhile, the system still has a ways to go before this gadget becomes a household staple. For one thing, the delivery service – probably the most alluring and time-saving aspect of the device – is only available through the D’Agnostino grocery chain or Peapod, which works with Stop ‘n’ Shop and Giant stores in ten states. This leaves a lot of areas without the delivery option (searching through Pittsburgh zip codes returned no service available). Hopefully, delivery areas will expand in the near future, but until then the Ikan is basically a $400 list maker. And while more accurate grocery lists may be helpful, often times it’s not the accuracy of the list that is the problem but the person buying the groceries. The Ikan also discounts the desire many grocery shoppers have to bargain hunt and buy things based on price rather than necessity – and that may be a huge oversight.
The Ikan is available for purchase from the Ikan online store for $399.00.
