Amazon.com Inc. today announced that it no longer will sell Dash buttons, the single-item press-to-order devices they first launched in 2015.

The physical Amazon Dash buttons were roughly the size of a packet of gum and allowed users simply to press the button to order the item tied to it.

The idea behind them was to make it much easier for Amazon shoppers to reorder important, regularly needed items such as laundry detergent and paper towels. Each individual button, which sold for $4.99, included branding for the item the button was linked to, such as Tide detergent and Clorox wipes.

Always somewhat odd devices, the Dash buttons are credited with bringing simple, in-home “internet of things” reordering to homes. But since they were launched, technology has rapidly advanced and Amazon no longer sees them as holding as much appeal.

Amazon offers multiple services that enable the same functions as the Dash buttons, starting with Amazon Echo and Echo-enabled devices. The ability to order something such as laundry detergent can now easily be done using a voice command to a device supporting Echo.

Even Echo aside, technology has advanced to the point that Amazon now offers the “Dash Replenishment Service.” Negating the need for a separate device such as with the Dash Button, DRS can be built into devices to enable automatic ordering when supplies are required.

In one example, a coffee machine can measure the consumption of coffee pods and as the supply falls to a certain level, the machine itself, without human interaction, orders new coffee pods from Amazon.

“Since the introduction of the Dash program, we’ve continued to work on making the shopping experience convenient and easy, and in some cases, even disappear for customers,” Amazon said in a statement. “With Dash Replenishment, we’ve launched hundreds of devices globally that automatically reorder essentials so customers don’t have to think at all about restocking.”

Although Amazon is no longer selling Dash buttons, the e-commerce giant has committed to providing ongoing support for existing Dash button owners. So one-touch product ordering using Dash buttons isn’t dead yet, but it’s an open question how much longer Amazon will continue to support them.

Image: Amazon