Zebra Technologies helps retailers take personal shopping to the next level

PS20 personal shopper solution helps retailers deliver a superior customer experience and improve sales

Zebra Technologies Corporation has introduced the PS20, its sixth generation personal shopping solution (PSS), to allow shoppers to scan items as they go, streamlining the checkout experience.

Zebra's Android-based personal shopper enables a new range of applications that empower store associates and managers to improve efficiency while providing a more personalized, frictionless shopping experience for customers.

With retailers battling brick-and-mortar and online competitors, advanced solutions that personalize the best in-store shopping experience have become essential for survival. Zebra's PSS enables shoppers to enhance their shopping journey, giving them the power to download their shopping lists, providing fast access to the information enhancing their buying decisions. Scanning and packing items as they go, the PS20 lets them skip the checkout queue, making the in-store experience as fluid as online shopping, with no waiting for delivery.

"Today's shoppers are increasingly digitally literate, comfortable with smartphone technology and expect access to information and products faster than ever before," said Leslie Hand, Vice President, IDC Retail Insights. "The PS20 gives retailers an advanced solution to engage these customers with the features required to improve the in-store experience. Zebra has used its expertise to design an advanced solution that offers hands-free scanning, voice support and in-store locationing."

The PS20 is the latest addition to the Zebra® personal shopping device ecosystem. With the same award-winning design as other devices within the Zebra mobile computing portfolio, the PS20 has new features that optimize the daily workflows of store workers and enhance the customer experience. A new microphone allows voice commands and rapid responses to customer questions. Scanning items is easier with a powerful barcode reader. It's designed to scan poorly printed or damaged 1D/2D labels, recognize Digimarc barcodes embedded in product packaging, and support hands-free scanning via proximity sensors.

Accurate indoor positioning is also crucial for retailers to provide in-store navigation, assisted selling capabilities with personalized coupons, promotions, recommended items as well as helping store associates quickly find or replenish stock. The PS20 is the first Zebra PSS to support Visible Light Communication (VLC), best-in-class locationing technology by which the front-facing camera detects LEDs and instore lighting to fuel machine learning algorithms to give retailers a better understanding of consumers' movement through their stores. This enables retailers to gather valuable insights into shopping habits using loyalty cards and purchase tracking and opens opportunities for next-gen store applications such as face and image recognition.

"As one of the first major players to enter the personal shopping technology space, Zebra continues to improve its solutions to help retailers address rapidly rising competitive pressures to deliver exceptional, efficient shopping experiences," said Joe White, Vice President and General Manager, Enterprise Mobile Computing, Zebra Technologies. "The next-generation, Android-based PS20 has evolved to meet the needs of shoppers, staff and management alike, giving retailers a performance edge to support today's consumers in the on-demand economy."

With the PS20, Zebra's partners can provide customers with one of the best PSS on the market. The PS20 beats enterprise devices in its class in computing power, display resolution, scanning performance, rugged design, locationing support and voice applications.

Key takeaways

• The PS20 new features include a microphone, powerful proximity sensors, a front-facing camera, interface personalization and enhanced scanning capability.
• Enabling more personalized customer offers and store mapping, VLC technology makes in-store locating more accurate than ever.
• The device embodies the familiarity of a consumer smartphone yet offers enterprise-grade durability, power and capability.
• Store workers use the same device as shoppers and can quickly respond to price checks, answer questions and track stock.