this post was submitted on 28 Aug 2025
293 points (97.1% liked)
Technology
76089 readers
2408 users here now
This is a most excellent place for technology news and articles.
Our Rules
- Follow the lemmy.world rules.
- Only tech related news or articles.
- Be excellent to each other!
- Mod approved content bots can post up to 10 articles per day.
- Threads asking for personal tech support may be deleted.
- Politics threads may be removed.
- No memes allowed as posts, OK to post as comments.
- Only approved bots from the list below, this includes using AI responses and summaries. To ask if your bot can be added please contact a mod.
- Check for duplicates before posting, duplicates may be removed
- Accounts 7 days and younger will have their posts automatically removed.
Approved Bots
founded 2 years ago
MODERATORS
you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
view the rest of the comments
Honestly, the drive thru speaker is on the brink of disappearing if mobile order continues at the pace its going. They'll get rid of it for a QR code or NFC scanner.
Me to all restaurants, stores, basically anybody : I'm not installing your fucking app.
Edit: I realize I'm abnormal and most people are fine with it, but I'm not okay with it and I won't do it
It's a remarkable entitlement.
Let's say I've never dealt with your restaurant before. Why would I start my relationship with you by installing your lowest-bid spyware on my personal device? You have yet to even convince me I'll ever want a Quesachalupa Wrap Crunch Bellgrande (the same as "taco, add tomatoes", but $3.72 more) again.
We were driving somewhere and suddenly decided to order some chicken on the way home (figured it would be done when we got there and we wouldn't have to wait).
They required an app: my wife downloaded it, set up an account, picked the store that was on the way home (but not closest to where we were) and put the order into the app, only to have it fail sending it to the location.
Several times.
By the third try we were in the parking lot and I just went in and ordered.
Same friend.
I doubt mobile orders will continue to grow as people still wait at the drive through because ordering while driving isn't safe or practical. A big part of the convenience is just being able to stop by without a lot of preplanning.
This has been a wonderful development for me. As a non smartphone person the deals being in the apps has been part of whats gotten me to stop using fast food. The main reason is the price but the online deals would have had me back if I could just stop in and order them. Its mom and pop shops for me until they get roped into the app ecosphere.
Have you tried comparing the in app deals to the local coupon mailers? I don’t eat much fast food so I’ve never ordered through an app but I receive the mailer coupons weekly.
oh yeah. They don't even come close in most cases. Subway maybe but like dominoes and mcdonalds have some real loss leaders in their app. Anyway im not going to be putting in to much effort because honestly I was on myself to stop eating fast food and its sorta great they made themselves dead to me. I firmly think they have essentially eliminated a whole section of customers as im sure my wife and I are not the only ones. Certainly not the majority as I see folks in line at the drive through and grub hub showing up at my complex. Maybe one percent. Its really funny because I thought much of it was food addiction but now I realize a lot of it was the cheap and convenient aspect and cheap is pretty important especially with my recent financial realities.
Seconded, mine got rid of actual in store ordering and replaced it with kiosks that are basically just a giant interface for the mobile app years ago. I've heard most of their drive through orders are from mobile orders too now, but that is purely anecdotal just from chatting with the guy at the drive through window while I was waiting after placing a mobile order in the parking lot.
I refuse to use those stupid self order kiosks. I went to the drive thru Instead and refused to pull up there so they could deliver my food while artificially keeping the drive thru time per customer statistic low.
In bird-people culture, that is considered a dick move.