Intel Makes a... High Tech Vending Machine?
We know Intel for its CPUs and chipsets, but did you know that it also makes vending machines?
We saw the Intel Intelligent Vending System at the company's Computex booth, complete with an Intel branded sticker. What sets this machine apart from other vending machines is its massive touchscreen display for showing items for sale, prices, and other information.
Using a screen instead of a glass window has its obvious advantages, as the machine can display more information about the products and other advertisements. The tradeoff is that buyers can no longer see the product uncoil and fall to bottom of the machine, but that will also help put an end to the "coil malfunctions" when it doesn't work.
Perhaps the most startling feature of this machine is that it features a built-in camera that interfaces with facial recognition software that's able to determine the approximate age and sex of the buyer – potentially allowing the machine to alter its presentation according to tastes while providing valuable market information to the vendor.
All of this was powered with a Core 2 Duo chip.
All it takes is a kid with a rock...
Intel hardware? If the packaging was good enough, I could see Newegg vending machines.
*nerdgasm*
All it takes is a kid with a rock...
but might not be intelligent enough to differentiate between a kid & a dwarf, or will detect a thin female as male....
P.S., AMD might come with a more powerful (with Dual Phenom II X6 processor) vending machine concept, with a electronic cap connected to it (to be on user's head), which can sense users mind without even touching any screen, & displays required information.
Yep, I just died laughing. Good times, good times.
Maybe AMD should look at presenting something interesting at Computex.
This machine was running linux and had a fingerprint reader so that you could store money into an account. It also had headlines of breaking news and what not. I remember one day having a conversation with some co-workers about how, ehem, facinating one of the ice cream advertisements was. Think, Magnums from the UK.