Here are a few tips to help make your barcode scanning with the Shopping List app more successful:
1) Keep teh barcode centered in the middle of the screend.
2) Hold the iPhone VERY steady while the barcode scanner is focusing the camera.
3) Keep the iPhone a fixed distance from the barcode while the camera is focusing. I've noticed moving the iPhone closer and farther away while focusing generates the most number of incorrect barcode numbers scanned.
4) Do not rotate the iPhone while while barcode scanning.
5) Find a distance for the iPhone from the barcode such that the length of the barcode fills the width (narrow part) of the iPhone screen.
6) Don't scan the barcode such that the length of the barcode fills the long part of the iPhone screen. This seems to usually generate incorrect barcode readings.
7) Keep the plane of the iPhone and the plane of the barcode parallel. If the plane of the iPhone is at an angle to the barcode, this can generate incorrect barcode numbers.
8) Keep the distance between the iPhone and the barcode such that the barcode is well focused on the iPhone screen. A good distance is between 3 to 5 inches. Don't have the iPhone closer than 3 inches or farther than 5 inches from the barcode. Sometimes holding the iPhone farther away is better as it allows the fine details of some barcodes to be focused better by the camera on the screen.
Last edited: Mon, 19 Sep 2011, 04:12pm by admin