Comments on: Vending machines test mental agility

By: Sam

Sam — Sun, 12 Sep 2010 23:55:13 +0000

Re my previous post about Coca Cola vending machines…whilst we were working on the campaign we also distributed 1000s of these ‘Out of Order’ stickers which some decided would be best placed on Coke vending machines in the hope that at a glance punters would believe the machine to be ‘Out of Order’ and not make a purchase!
Of course the ‘Out of Order’ comment was on said stickers in relation to the companies unethical practices, and not for purposes of sabotaging vending machine sales!! One version of the sticker can be seen at the link below, just so you get the idea, not that anyone would ever condone sticking them on Coke’s machines as described above!!
http://www.killercoke.org/outoforder.jpg

By: Sam

Sam — Sun, 12 Sep 2010 23:35:06 +0000

I helped out with the making of Mark Thomas’s Dispatches documentary on Coca Cola for channel 4 and whilst Mark was researching Coke he discovered they are working on a vending machine with a built in thermostat that affects the price of your cold drink, which basically means that the hotter the day is the more they could charge for a cold drink!! (But of course we already knew they are evil, right?!)
This reminds me that at the time Mark was toying with the idea of getting Derren involved with some kind of stunt/prank ad campaign…unfortunately it never happened which I was very disappointed in as I am a big fan of magic, mystery and all things Derren Brown!! Would have been great to work with Derren as well as Mark!

By: funkgoddess

funkgoddess — Fri, 10 Sep 2010 08:38:08 +0000

they’ve made a drink from judi dench? that’s awful.

By: 1984

1984 — Wed, 08 Sep 2010 14:45:40 +0000

This is just to get us ready to bend over to our future overlords the machines (which btw is the same as corporations)

By: Peter

Peter — Wed, 08 Sep 2010 11:05:46 +0000

I wonder what the japanese machine will tell a transvestite regarding gender ..

And age?? I dont think that is wise, although the machine might actually not tell the client but save it on a chip for marketing research.

Our elevator speaks. Cool huh?! I’m trying to get it to say my name .. we practice daily ..

By: rogibson

rogibson — Wed, 08 Sep 2010 10:53:44 +0000

These look cool, but might be a problem if:

A) You’re sat in a stuffy waiting lounge at 4am and just want a drink, not an IQ test.
B) The guy next to you passes out from dehydration and your ability to rouse him in a timely manner is better served by a £1 coin, not a quiz.

Cute idea though.

By: Swuava

Swuava — Wed, 08 Sep 2010 09:03:47 +0000

Where I used to work there was an ordinary vending machine that would test me and my co-workers agility.
It was free just like this one, except the agility came because there was a que of people behind you and everyone seems to make their best effort to take the cup as soon as possible.
The machine had a spinning thing after the holder opens, this requires the employee to snatch the cup as soon as it appears available and get out of the way for the next person to press the button and repeat the agility training…

By: Nicki

Nicki — Wed, 08 Sep 2010 08:40:19 +0000

Wow, interesting!

By: Nik Sargent

Nik Sargent — Wed, 08 Sep 2010 08:36:49 +0000

Most vending machines already are a test of intelligence, with poorly designed layouts and insufficient information on how to operate them. No standardisation across the industry and little attention to ergonomics!