Lowe's employees get on the iPhone

According to Lowe's Rick Damron, executive VP store operations, the Mooresville, N.C.-based retail giant has rolled out iPhones to more than 60% of its stores, where they're used as sales tools and scanners.

The mobile devices customized with retail applications and based on Apple's iPhone technology are expected to be rolled out to all stores by the end of the year.

Speaking during the Lowe's third-quarter earnings conference, Damron said the intuitive devices are the first technology rollout that didn’t require training manuals.

"The feedback from our stores on all of these upgrades has been highly positive for one simple reason," he said. "Associates feel they are better equipped to serve customers.”

Damron said each store has about 25 of the iPhone devices. Because employees no longer have to walk to a fixed terminal about 400 times a day, it makes them more productive, he said.