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Buying more Doritos at the simple push of a button sounds like an awfully dangerous idea. Let’s hope Amazon knows what it’s doing.
Last year, the e-retail giant introduced Dash buttons, which are small, Internet-connected buttons that people can click to purchase household goods like paper towels or detergent through Amazon. That announcement was just before April 1, 2015, and some reporters wondered if the concept was a joke. Guess who’s laughing now!
To mark the first anniversary of these tiny widgets, Amazon on Thursday unleashed dozens more of them, tripling the current lineup to surpass 100 different buttons. The new buttons include Arm & Hammer cat litter, Energizer batteries, Peet’s Coffee, Rid-X septic treatment, Trojan condoms, Zico coconut water and of course, Doritos.
“We heard loud and clear from customers that they wanted more brands, more categories, and more products in the program,” Daniel Rausch, director of Amazon Dash, said in a statement.
He added that customers are now using Dash buttons more than once a minute, though avoided offering more specifics on the Dash business such as how many buttons have shipped out already.
Dash buttons are available to Amazon Prime members in the US essentially for free. Customers have to pay $4.99 upfront for each one, but that payment is then reimbursed after the first purchase using the button.
The Dash buttons are yet another way for Amazon to hook in customers and keep them from buying quickly consumable items from nearby grocery or convenience stores. Brands seem to love the program because it helps keep customers loyal. But now that Amazon has created a veritable vending machine of options for all kinds of everyday goods, one is left to wonder what’s next. Is there going to be a fresh fruit button? Maybe a new furniture button?
But don’t think too hard about what may be coming later, because there are now a lot more actual buttons to press already.
The full list of new Dash buttons available starting Thursday:
And here is last year’s lineup, which is still available:
& Cheese
