Smartphone barcode scanning apps are changing the way people shop. Shoppers can scan an item's barcode using a mobile device's built-in camera and a barcode scanner app. This provides shoppers with all kinds of useful product information to help them make a more informed purchasing decision.
To human eyes, a barcode is a square or rectangular image or label found on the side of almost every product sold today. It seems to consist of nothing more than a series of parallel black lines of differing widths and spacing. In reality, this seemingly random black and white design contain a wealth of information.
The barcode is actually a machine language. It visually represents data that can be read by a device like a barcode scanner. Some of the information contained in the barcode on a box of food can include-
- Product name
- Price
- Product specifications (size, color, type, etc.)
- Manufacturer
- Production time & date
- Expiration dates
- Ingredients
- Nutritional information
Barcodes have been around since 1951! However, they didn't really begin to catch on until retailers began to adopt automated checkout systems. Today, you'll find a barcode label on almost every item you purchase in-person or online.
In addition to speeding up and simplifying the transaction process, barcodes provide many other advantages, including-
- Eliminates pricing errors
- Data is available immediately
- A barcode scanning system is easy to use and learn
- Barcodes are easy and inexpensive to generate and print
- Provide better sales and inventory management
- Barcodes can contain a wide range of data
There are two kinds of barcodes- one dimensional (1D) or linear, and two dimensional (2D). 1D barcodes are the ones with the lines, such as a UPC barcode. 2D barcodes like QR codes consist of an arrangement of geometric shapes.
Up until recently, you needed a barcode scanner device to read a barcode. Now you can download a barcode scanning app directly to your smartphone. Barcode scanning apps have created a whole new way of shopping