Look What You Can Get In Airport Vending Machines Nowby Michele Cheplic | More from this Blogger 05 Sep 2007 08:05 PM Forget about bite-size chocolate chip cookies and mini bags of Doritos, these days airport vending machines are offering goods that will have you digging for credit card instead of loose change. Diapers, blood pressure cuffs, iPods, and laptops... in a vending machine? Oh yes. And you can't miss them. Companies including Shop24, PowerPort and Zoom Systems are placing their massive machines filled with deluxe goodies in airports throughout the country. They stand in high traffic areas and are prime for impulse purchases by travelers on the go. The larger than life vending machines have been popular in Europe and Asia for years. But, in the United States the growing number of airport convenience stores eclipsed the large vending machines... until now. The machines are now appealing to airports because they take up less space than stores and require little or no construction work. Here's what you will find in some of them: Zoom Systems. Located in airports in Las Vegas and San Francisco these "robotic shops," sell electronic goods such as iPods, headphones, Sony PlayStation Portable games and skin care products. PowerPort. You can find these machines at airports in San Francisco, Dallas/Fort Worth, Austin, San Antonio, New York LaGuardia, Minneapolis-St. Paul, St. Louis and Jacksonville, Florida and plans are in place to put them in five more by the end of the year. The machines give travelers access to electronic services such as Internet access, laptop rental ($6.95 per hour) and laptop/cellphone recharging, downloading music, movies and e-mail. Shop24. The company placed its first machine in the Dallas/Fort Worth Airport about a month ago. The 13-foot-wide machine (some travelers have dubbed it the "Robocop") sells more than 200 items, including refrigerated meals, phone cards, curling irons, coloring books and umbrellas. Company officials say the machine can hold items up to 7.5 pounds. Would you be enticed to drop money in these new machines? Related Articles: Shopping At The Airport... More Than I Bargained For Travel Tidbits: Sleeping In Style... At Airports and Hot, Hot Hotels Traveling With Children-More Airport Play Areas A Place For Your Kids To Play Between Flights Learn more about Michele Cheplic  Michele Cheplic was born and raised in Hilo, Hawaii, but now lives in Wisconsin. Michele graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a degree in Journalism. Relevanttravel tags User Comments No comments on this article yet. Be the first to comment! Community Tags airport, shopping at the airport, Travel, vending machine Discuss this article
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