A TikToker discovered a bizarre time-saving trick at Walmart self-checkout that had viewers wondering what the purpose behind it was.
The TikTok, that has over 200,000 views at the time of publishing, shows @sushiissogoodomg scanning her items without using the barcode.
This sparked a lot of questioning in the comments, with people wondering what the reason behind this was, and how they had never noticed it before.
Self-checkouts are definitely the quickest and easiest way to get through the dreaded grocery shopping. However, it can become tedious trying to find barcodes and scan through all your items yourself.
The TikTok shows the creator scanning Walmart Great Value items by simply holding the scanner up to the front of the packaging.
The scanner is able to register the item no matter whether you scan the writing on the packet, or even the photo of the food itself on the packaging.
Viewers were shocked that they had never noticed this before, and had several theories as to why this might happen.
Many noticed from first-hand experience that this trick only worked on Walmart own-brand items, and some people believed that the scanners were able to pick up the writing on the packaging.
However, others speculated that there might be hidden barcodes in the pictures on the packaging.
This is actually true. Although some people had guessed that these hidden barcodes were put in place because lower cost items are more likely to be shoplifted, the real reason is much less sinister.
Instead of having to hunt for a barcode or having to scan it at just the right angle, the cashier or customer can point the scanner at any part of the item and have it show up. It can even pick up on more than one item at a time.
This is supposed to make the checkout process quicker and less frustrating for workers and customers, so now you can do the grocery shop without the hassle of searching for a barcode.
This isn’t the only surprising thing Walmart is hiding; here are some fast food dupes you can find on supermarket shelves.