Bar-Code

Short of getting a Bluetooth laser price-code scanner, this app provides the easiest scanning using the camera, performing extremely well under low-light conditions. That stated, the app also has a problem where it develops memory loss (amnesia?) when switching between apps, such that it periodically loses the entire contents of the 10-30 prior scans: it's as if you selected the 'reset' option, when of course you didn't. This makes the app unreliable for serious business use.

I wanted a super simple app that would just print out the barcode data. That is exactly what it did. My only wish is that there was an option to constrain the area that it uses for detecting the barcode. I had 5 barcodes I needed all close together and it was difficult to get it to focus on the barcode I wanted vs. the one right above or right below it. If there was a way I could decide how big the scan area was vs the entire screen then I could have made it small enough to only capture one barcode at a time. 4 stars for now. If the author could make the change I want I would switch to 5 stars and get the ad free version for sure. The people that are giving bad ratings did not read the app description. It says all you need to know. There are tons of other apps that look up products for you. That is not the point of this one and it says so right in the description.

This is the PERFECT companion application to Readerware for books. I was helping my brother inventory his home library; keying in all those International Standard Book Numbers (ISBN) was a daunting task! Then I discovered Bar-Code! Since 80% of the books had a barcode on the book jacket with the ISBN number, Bar-Code was like having 20 other people helping! I simply selected its "Continuous scan" option and held the iPhone about 6 inches over the barcode. The audible confirmation -- similar to the camera sound -- let me know the barcode was successfully captured. I simply moved on to the next book. After about 25 books or so, I emailed the list of captured barcodes to myself, cleared out the list on the iPhone, and started the next batch of books. This application does not connect to the web, look up prices, etc. It simply captures barcodes, keeps a list of them, and then gives you several ways to use that list; email was the one I chose and worked without fault. It did take me a few tries to find the best distance and lighting conditions -- 4 to 6 inches and no shadow cast on barcode -- but subsequently, worked without any errors. A terrific application!