I don't mind self checkouts really, and they can be convenient when they work properly. But when they don't, it's annoying. Also, I have some level of social anxiety, so they can be good for avoiding interaction with the checkout person!

I do remember when Sainsburys first introduced self checkouts, IIRC in the late 00s. They were incredibly glitchy, until presumably the software was updated.

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I found that (on the very few occasions that I've tried to use self-checkouts) that they really don't seem to like you using your own bag (in my case a backpack). Make the mistake of moving something in the bag while packing and you get "unexpected item in the packing area" error.

In normal circs I quite like self checkouts if I only have a few things, but after getting caught out on numerous occasions with all that bagging area stuff, I just pack it all after I have paid.

Former picker here! Yes, we got timed - the system gave us 30 seconds per item - and we were ‘spoken to’ if we had too many substitute items even though it was not our fault if the requested item wasn’t in stock