QR codes now work in Australia
I’m sure they’ve been out for a little while now, but I’ve just recently downloaded an app for my iPhone that reads QR codes. These are the square barcodes I wrote about after coming back from Japan in April and seeing them absolutely everywhere. In Australia I’ve only seen a few phone companies using them in their magazine advertisements and on bus shelters – so they haven’t yet hit the mainstream. But I don’t think it will be long until we start seeing them in advertising all over as well as in email signatures and on stationery for a range of different industries.
QR codes embed web content and once scanned link you directly to it. No more painful typing of ‘http://www’ before every web address or fishing around search engines for the site you want. The barcodes need to be quite large otherwise your camera may have trouble reading it and they need to have a little clear space around them.
You can download the QR app by searching ‘QR app’ or ‘NeoReader’ on your iPhone. Either app works well.
Or you can make your own: qrapp.com or createqrcode.appspot.com
There are apps out there for other phones as well. Nokia, Sony Ericsson, Panasonic and LG are all on the case. You can find a full list of QR code software and compatible phones here:
mobile-barcodes.com/qr-code-software/
You can even test to see if your code reading software is working by using the code above…why not let me know where it takes you?
Yours in design,
Janet-eratops
