UK supermarket scales go 404 on shoppers

In the UK city of Coventry, a set of scales at a Tesco store displayed the odd number 404. This phenomenon was spotted by a reader named Rowan Archer, who shared the image with fellow tech enthusiasts. The number 404 is typically associated with a website not found, but in this case, it seems to be a device identifier rather than an error code.

The scales, which appear to be from the Avery Berkel XT series, feature a large color touchscreen that allows customers to select the produce they wish to weigh. The device runs on a version of Linux, offering more flexibility and room for features like showing video advertisements to increase customer basket value. While the amount of memory in the device may seem excessive compared to older mechanical scales, it highlights the rapid advancement in technology.

Despite this, the scales still serve the same basic purpose as their mechanical predecessors, with the added benefit of a more user-friendly interface.