Amazon’s press-to-order Dash buttons are officially discontinued

Amazon’s Dash buttons are no more. The tiny stick-on buttons that allowed customers to quickly reorder popular household items with a press have been discontinued by the online retailer, as confirmed by CNET. Dash buttons were priced at only $5 and were available for a slew of brands spanning many categories — from paper towels and laundry detergent to condoms. They could be mounted wherever made the most sense, whether in the kitchen, bathroom, or any other spot where users might need a reminder to order more of something.

Existing Dash buttons will continue to function “so long as the public keeps using them,” CNET says. The company seems to believe that the smart home and its Alexa voice assistant have obviated the need for Dash buttons. Plus, some appliance makers have built the Dash Replenishment Service directly into their products to help consumers quickly reorder associated items.

Last month, a German court ruled that the Dash buttons violate the country’s consumer protection laws, claiming that the press-to-buy mechanism fails to provide enough information about a product’s price. Amazon offered no indication that its decision to end all Dash sales is related to the Germany ruling. Amazon told CNET it has sold “millions” of Dash buttons. The company even made virtual versions of the connected button in 2017.

Amazon does have safeguards in place for accidental Dash presses: orders placed with the button can be cancelled before they ship out, and repeat presses won’t trigger another order until the previous one is successfully delivered.