The kiosk industry is gearing up for one of its biggest shows of the year — Customer Engagement Technology World next week in San Francisco. I'll be there to report on the latest and greatest kiosk solutions on the market. Although I'd never have enough time to list all the technology expected at the show, below is a short preview of a few on my long list to check out.

Phoenix Kiosk
The VIGIX Retail Solution will debut at the show and only needs about 2 feet of floor space and allows companies to service their consumers directly at the point of need, using a no-moving-parts dispensing technology that can be resupplied by common carriers such as UPS, FedEx or DHL.

Apparently, VIGIX can sell physical goods such cell phones, watches or DVD-sized envelopes, or wireless downloads of digital products such as movies, music, books and reports. The built-in, Web-based control system provides real-time sales and inventory reporting to tell retailers when to restock the machine.

Phoenix will unveil the VIGIX and several other solutions, including its concierge and virtual receptionist kiosks at booth 631.

Connected Technology Solutions
Health-care kiosks are hotter than ever, and CTS will feature its models that are adjustable for handicap access.

I'm also looking forward to checking out the company's workforce kiosk, the solution it designed for Burger King and also the "Tree," which CTS officials describe as "the most unusual kiosk" at the show.

CTS will be at booth 518.

Meridian Zero Degrees
Sheridan Orr, marketing director, told me that the company is excited about its new Young at Heart CardioID kiosk that measures the relative age of users' cardiovascular system and returns their "CardioID." Meridian, in partnership with Plasco ID, will also debut the Centurion, a building-security solution that allows people to sign in and show drivers' licenses and then receive badges and IDs with appropriate access.

Lastly, St. Joseph Communications will be sharing the Meridian booth to launch its ePrintit Kiosk designed for coffee shops and other places where people work remotely on Wi-Fi. It allows users to print, ship and copy — everything you need to operate in a remote office but also has a sleek and elegant design and a small footprint, Orr said.

Meridian's booth is 608.

Frank Mayer & Associates
Frank Mayer & Associates Inc. will showcase the SoloHealth Station, an interactive, self-service health-screening kiosk that empowers consumers to take healthcare into their own hands. According to a press release the machine is currently in development but provides free self-service health screenings of vision, blood pressure, weight and body mass index. Its goal is to deliver an overall health assessment and access to a database of local health-care providers — all in a matter of minutes.

Frank Mayer and Associates, Inc. will unveil the kiosk at booth 500.

Cryptera
Cryptera, a provider of secure payment solutions, will showcase its outdoor kiosk focused on providing a more cost-effective, unattended payment option for manufacturers of transaction kiosks, drive thru applications, ticketing machines, etc.

According to a press release, the Cryptera UPT 7000 is a rugged, point-of-sale terminal designed for outdoor use and security and payment processing efficiency. It combines end-to-end encryption and the necessary components of an unattended payment system into one unit. It's also certified and compliant to PCI security standards and prepared for International EMV transactions with use of chip card and PIN code.

Cryptera will feature the solution at booth 539

Other companies, including KioWare, Seiko Instruments Printers, KIOSK Information Systems and NCR, will also unveil new solutions at CETW. You'll have to check back next week for more details.

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