Smart Shelf

Electronic shelf labels as a concept had one big problem - power. Stores didn’t provide power to most shelves so they needed a “powerless” solution and so eInk electronic shelf labels were the first deployed. eInk is the same technology you see in an Amazon Kindle eReader. Have you noticed when you turn it off it still shows the last page? That’s because it doesn’t use any power except when changing the screen. That meant that a battery operated unit could last several years (or until a naughty shopper stole the battery from the back, which happened a lot more than you might think).

LED shelf labels can vary in size and range across an entire length of the shelf. Since they are LED, full color can be used and more information potentially displayed including customer reviews and ads. Readability of LED labels, however, can be slightly more difficult to the eye for some. What’s driving the pixelation is the cost of screens. Proper HD screens in these custom dimensions are cost-prohibitive, but more cost-effective pixelated LEDs aren’t shopper friendly.

Electronic shelf labels are an early entrant to the path to the fully digital shelf. They have myriad benefits and challenges.