"We first saw this technology 10 years ago," said Richard Mader, the executive director of the Association for Retail Technology Standards. "It's something well beyond that now."
Of an estimated 10.2 million checkout terminals shipped last year, 25 percent used wireless connectivity such as Bluetooth, cellular, or WiFi, according to Craig Foster, senior analyst with ABI Research in Oyster Bay, N.Y.
"By 2016, we're forecasting that this will rise to over 30 percent," he said.
Apple was among the first retail stores to move away from stationary point-of-sale stations to mobile ones, starting in 2005. Many of these devices are now iPod Touch models made by Apple with point-of-sale software installed, Mader said.
Sue Shayler of Oakland Park, Fla., recently made a purchase at a Fort Lauderdale Apple store without having to stand in line to pay at a cash register.
Instead, she paid an employee equipped with a mobile point-of-sale device.
"You are already working with a sales associate and they process your sale right there, no need to go to another terminal at another area of the store," Shayler said.
Nordstrom added WiFi to all full-line stores across the country in November to set the stage for using mobile devices inside the stores. By July, the company had nearly 6,000 handheld devices capable of mobile checkout functionality inside stores.
At Macy's shoe department, employees use handheld devices to check for different sizes and colors without leaving a customer's side.
Hertz, the worldwide car-rental company, has been using handheld and portable printing devices since the late 1980s, spokeswoman Paula Rivera said. The mobile systems handle the return of cars, closing out rental agreements and printing receipts.
"This process eliminated the need for the customer to physically go to a car-rental return counter and stand in line to return their rental vehicle," Rivera said.
Mobile technology can eliminate lines outside, too.
Boca Raton, Fla., nightclub owner Tim Wells whisks patrons into his 21-and-up club, Spin, by using portable identification-card scanners. Employees scan a driver's license at the door of the club to check whether it's valid.
"We're moving toward all-mobile," said Mader, at the retail technology association. "It's like a train. The future is in each shopper's phone."
Mader said some stores already allowed registered shoppers to scan items on their cellphones through downloaded apps.
"You can walk in with your phone, scan the item to get more information, buy it right there, and walk out with proof of purchase on your screen."
