It’s here. There’s finally a button that you can push to order something immediately from Amazon. Compulsive shoppers get ready! But you can’t order any product - not yet, anyway. Here’s how the new Amazon button works (yes, it’s real!).

The Buttons

Amazon has teamed up with specific companies like Tide, Gillette, and Huggies to bring you the ‘Dash Button.’ This button is a physical piece of hardware that Amazon will be sending to Prime customers. The button is connected to the Amazon app via WiFi, and every time you push it you will get an order of that one thing. So, let’s say that you need diapers right away and you are a Prime member with a Huggies Dash Button. All you have to do is push the button, and Huggies will be on their way to you.

Amazon Prime members are limited to three Dash Buttons per home, and you do have to be invited by Amazon at this time in order to get your buttons. The buttons come with hooks on either end and kind of look like keychains that you can hang anywhere - just make sure that they aren’t in reach of a kid that might push the button repeatedly.

More Home Connection to Come

It has been rumored for a few months now that Amazon has been a hiring a lot more staff members to work on a whole new division of the company that will focus solely on connected home products. The Dash button is just the first of these products to roll out. It’s hard to figure out just how practical this button is though. If you are truly out of something like Tide or Huggies, you’re probably more likely to run to the pharmacy to pick that thing up then you are to tap the Amazon button and wait for your order to arrive.

Then again, Amazon Prime members get fast shipping, and Amazon tends to be cheaper than most stores, so the button makes sense on some levels. There is still that problem of people pushing the button though. You’d have to hang it high in order to prevent a kid from tapping it, and keep it away from anyone that might push it for fun.

The Reaction

Initial reactions to the Dash button are mixed with some people loving this idea, and others balking at it. Do we really need an instant button to order products? Why can’t other products be included? Can you cancel and order if it’s placed by mistake? All of these things are valid questions, and Amazon is expected to answer those questions soon. For now, the button is here and some people in the US are going to get an offer to receive a button.

If you are a Prime member and you didn’t get a button offer, you’ll have to sit tight. Amazon is targeting specific users for the first buttons to test them out. Once the testing is done, I imagine that you would be able to order your buttons. It’s also likely that Amazon will be adding more retailers to the lineup, so you might see other big company buttons in addition to the ones that currently exist.