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Using Your Phone’s Casing as a Business Card

marsha — Tue, 21 May 2013 05:47:58 +0000

By now, most people in developing and developed countries are using a smartphone. Considering the fact that the cost of smartphone these days have dropped to an all-time affordable level, there is really very few reasons NOT to own a smartphone. Anyway, how has this affected the world when it comes to QR Code usage? Lots.

Just heard from the grapevine that there is a company that has come up with personalized smartphone casing with printed QR Code on it. When the QR Code is scanned with a QR Code reader, it reveals the very same details that your business card carries! What does it mean to everyday folks like you and me? It means that in the very near future, if this trend continues to build traction, we may no longer need to print new business cards.

In the next few years, when we meet up with new people and want to exchange contact information, just flash the back of your smartphone at them!

There are very few bad things about this idea but one of the cons of using the smartphone as a business card is that everyone…and I mean ANYONE, will have access to your personal information. Even people you do not want to exchange the info with, unless you make it a point to hide the QR Code when in the company of….unpleasant people.

The good thing, however, lets say one was to lose their smartphone and a good Samaritan finds it, instead of having to rummage through your personal contact list or browse through your latest phone call logs and SMSes (makes me shiver just to think about this), all he or she needs to do is to scan the QR Code to get in touch with you via alternative methods…like business phone number, email or even Skype if you have loaded the information into the QR Code. And that isn’t all, if Twitter and Facebook details are included into the QR Code, they can message you instantly on those social networks too in the case of lost phones.

With the many different phone sizes out there in the market, I am wondering how these companies are going to deal with supply, size and design. In dealing with phone size issues, I am thinking that perhaps it would be better to design your own QR Code with free QR Code designers like our free QR Code creation tool, printing it out on a transparent sticker and sticking it onto our phone casing ourselves. It might not look as funky as the pastel colored phone casing but it seems more practical.

We would love to hear what you think about that. Personalized phone casing vs. DIY QR Code stickers?

QR Codes Show up at Xiamen Airport

admin — Wed, 15 May 2013 12:00:29 +0000

QR codes are making the check-in process at Xiamen Gaoqi International Airport a little bit easier.

For passengers who do not have to check in any baggage can check in by going to the Chinese language http://www.xmairport.com.cn/, the airport’s Web site.

On the site, they will be required to submit their personal information. After that, they will receive a message containing a QR code.

They will have to present this QR codes when they board. Security staff at the airport will have QR code readers to read the QR codes straight from their phones.

Passengers can use this mobile boarding system at four access points serving domestic flights: A, E, F and G. All of these access points already have the necessary barcode reader.

The barcode scanners will also be able to identify if the QR code is authentic or not. After the scan, the security staff will then give passengers boarding certificates.

For those who do not want the QR code, they can print out a boarding pass instead.

Not the First

This is not the first time that QR codes have appeared in airports. Aside from acting as a mobile boarding pass, QR codes have also been used to disseminate information to travelers.

One such example is found at the Phoenix Sky Harbor International. At the Sky Harbor, passengers can scan QR codes to get information on car rental companies in the area, or get airline information, or even get a list of restaurants inside the airport.

What makes this initiative notable is that you do not have to look very hard for these QR codes as they are printed on the shirts worn by airport staff.

The QR codes at Sky Harbor can help you:

1. Get updates on your flight.

2. Get parking locations, transportation, shops, services and restaurants.

3. Fill out a taxi feedback report.

4. Report problems related to restrooms.

Xiamen Airport Goes High Tech

marsha — Tue, 14 May 2013 13:57:04 +0000

It has been a long time coming but we heard from the grapevine that Xiamen airport is now allowing its passengers to check into the airport by scanning QR Code.

For those who are unfamiliar with QR Codes, they are an evolved version of your basic 2D barcode…the same ones that the cashier at the checkout counter scans with a special scanner. Except that with QR Codes, you do not need a specific scanner, not physically anyway, to scan a QR Code. All you need is your smartphone or any other devices that has an internet data plan and a free-to-download QR Code reader. The QR Code reader is completely free of charge to download, use and create. It is available for both Apple and Android operating systems.

So, anyway, China’s got itself a brand new airport in the form of the Xiamen Gaoqi International Airport. On top of boasting of some of the most innovative designs and elements, it has also launched it’s mobile online check-in service.

What does this mean to passengers boarding and dropping off at the Xiamen airport? It means that passengers no longer need to stand in long queues trying to check in their baggages. In fact, according to news reports, the QR Code acts as a boarding pass as well. So, the barcode acts as everything you need to get in and out of the airport.

To high flyers, this sounds like an amazing plan because it saves us all so much more time when we no longer need to contend with insane lines at the airports.

The downside to all of this is…yes, language.

At the point of writing this article, Xiamen airport’s QR Code check-in system is only available in mandarin. But we suspect that they will soon launch in other languages too. Sometimes, these systems are launched as a sub-beta programs to ensure that there is minimum muddle-ups before they start catering to more people, so, no surprise there.

At this stage, the QR Code-enabled boarding is also available within certain access points and domestically. Playing it safe, authorities of the airport is advising those who are using the QR Codes to keep the conventional boarding passes with them…just in case. And furthermore, if the arrival is at a city that does not accept or do not have the QR Code system, the usual boarding pass is required.

Is Google Glass Really Such a Different Threat To Our Privacy?

marsha — Mon, 13 May 2013 07:30:25 +0000

Ever since Google made the announcement about Google Glass, everyone (well, not literally but people who are into Internet and technology) have been up in arms about privacy. I, on the other hand, worry very little about it. Why? It is not that we are public people and most of us, let’s admit this, want to maintain our right to live as privately and as undisturbed (unphotographed, untalked about, untweeted about and unjudged) as possible.

With Google Glass, the complaint is more or less the same – now everyone’s going to know what you ate for lunch (Instagram), where you went with your friends (Foursquare), how you felt at the exhibition you went to (Twitter) and who you went with (Facebook). Yes, you might say that these are options available to you and you get the choice to post or NOT to post and with Google Glass, the transparency is scraped down to the bare minimal. There is, apparently, a very grave threat to our privacy, some lament.

I am not even talking about our pictures being taken every other second or minute (depending on where you are residing) from public CCTV systems designed to (no doubt) find and track criminals.

What people are protesting against, I guess, the fact that by making those information so publicly available, it is endangering not just our own lives but also our loved ones. However, even with this said, I think a lot of people are already posting pictures of themselves and their kids on Facebook and Instagram as it is, why is Google Glass such a great distinguisher? If you have behind-the-scenes look and disagree with this, please DO share your thoughts with us in the comments section. Maybe I just don’t know too much about what is really scaring people about Google Glass.

As one Telegraph journalist wrote, Google Glass does not really bring any NEW, per se, problems to how we are sharing stuff on the internet. Walk down the street and there is a small chance that someone is taking a picture to post on their online social networking accounts and you happen to be in the background – there you have it – EXPOSED.

The only way we can manage how much of our personal lives is exposed is to balance it out. Pick and choose what you choose to reveal of yourself and respect the rights of those who refuse to be tagged in your Facebook photos. For me, if I do not want to be tagged in a friend’s photo, I will gently remind them or remove the tag myself. Problem solved.

QR Code Newsbits: What Else Is Happening?

admin — Fri, 10 May 2013 12:00:10 +0000

QR Codes Appear in Mundy Park

In British Columbia in Canada, QR codes are regaling Mundy Park visitors to interesting bits of information about the park and everything inside it.

QR codes have been placed on park signs all around the area. When you scan the QR code, you will be able to see relevant and interactive information about the park. This also includes videos and sound.

Lori MacKay, parks, recreation and culture manager, said that the QR codes are there to meet the changing needs of people visiting the park. MacKay adds that the QR codes are able to give park visitors the information they want without having to incur high costs. QR codes, Mackay adds, cost much lower than traditional park signs.

For now, the park will have QR codes for 12 different areas within the park and these would give scanners information about the plants and animals. It will also give information about George Mundy, after whom the park was named. vThe park is going to monitor the number of QR codes scanned, and compare this to public feedback. They will then use this data to find out whether to put out more QR codes in other establishments and facilities in the city or not.

In addition, the city council has more ideas for future QR codes. For example, Councilor Mae Reid has suggested that the QR codes give out rules and regulations regarding dogs being taken off their leashes inside park premises, in addition to providing information on how to report coyote or bear sightings.

Star Toilet Paper Defends QR Codes

We honestly do not know if you would be comfortable using toilet paper with an ad for the neighborhood pizza place on it, but apparently putting QR codes on toilet paper works.

This is what Star Toilet Paper is saying when they came out with their press release last week.

Star Toilet Paper is a company that puts coupons and advertisements on toilet paper. And because of the limited space, what better way to extend it than with a QR code.

The company has been using the best practices in employing QR codes for its mini adverts.

As a result, Star Toilet Paper says that they are getting up to 16% in conversions from these QR codes, double the number reported by the Direct Marketing Association.

Star Toilet Paper also cites statistics from other organizations to prove their point. They report that according to ClickZ, QR codes were scanned 400% more times in 2012 compared to the numbers recorded in 2011.

Journalists Need To Jump Into Internet Game Plan and ENGAGE

marsha — Fri, 10 May 2013 09:33:15 +0000

The talks has been going for a good time and as long as journalists, editors and reporters continue to deny or refuse to hop on the internet game plan, there is only so much we can do for old-school journalists. With the internet, EVERYONE can be a writer. A blogger is a writer and in fact, some might even contend that people who Tweet are writing too. In times like this, there is pessimism and a lot of fear in the media and journalism industry – the internet is taking over and there is no one who will employ them anymore. There will be massive layoffs and magazines are going to have no other option than to throw in their towel. I guess this has got, if not a lot then a little, to do with the cutbacks at some huge agencies recently. Employed journalists are working harder and harder to remain relevant in order to keep their jobs.

I think journalists need to evolve together with the rest of the world – instead of resisting the changes and choosing to remain in a bubble of Lost Hope, joining in and coining up their own way to win over the users and readers is the only way they can remain relevant. And employed.

There is more good than bad, if you think about it carefully. Really good writers and reporters knows this and they need to get in the train. One prime example would be ever popular reporter, Anderson Cooper, who not only jumped into Twitter as soon as it became ‘the in thing’, he started his own fan base there. Together with his LIVE reporting, courageous work ethics and friendly personality, it would take a mountain to move this man into the unemployed pool of talents.

The media is not the only potential victim of the big bad internet, so are other traditional publishing industries. About a decade ago, people speculated that the eBook industry was going to kill off the book publishing sector but look at us now, we continue to have books everywhere. The publishing industry, the large ones at least, followed the trend and kept up.

One journalist and fired editor who consistently had to play cheerleader to downtrodden colleagues believes that there is more good from the internet than bad. She has a point when she said that reporters have more access to resources and sources; and communication is no longer a problem.

The problem lies in the fact that some more mature and old-school journalists and reporters are used to a one-way communication way of thinking. She contends that journalists need to get more engagement with the people they are writing for. The readers now have their own blogs, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn accounts and the information is all-ready for everyone to harvest and bank on.

Yes, profitability may be a key problem here for traditional media but those who are out to engage with the people they are writing for will remain the ultimate winner in the end, we predict.

Mystical QR Codes Hits Mystic Town of CT

marsha — Thu, 09 May 2013 05:13:33 +0000

Learning about the history and culture of a place that you are visiting should not end the very moment the plane hits the runway. Most of us try to absorb and learn as much as we can about a city or country before a trip. It turns us into frantic, info-hungry internet surfers who compiles lists, checklists and itineraries. We scour the bookstores and magazine stalls for travel magazines (read: books like Lonely Planet) and some even download travel apps like TripIt (run by TripAdvisor) so that we do not lose out on up-to-date information about the place.

But here is the thing – learning about a place should not end the we are already there, it should be a continuous process. Therefore, I applaud cities that runs that extra mile to ensure that visitors can get their hands on easily available information via the internet and smart devices.

That is what the town of Mystic CT has done. Take a stroll along the downtown area of mystic and you will notice more than just signs of offers, promotions and latest gimmicks. Store owners have gone ahead give permission for the placement of QR Codes on the window of their retail outlets, cafes, restaurants and roads to give visitors an inside look at how far the place has come.

This is what I would like to call the ‘instant but brief historical tour’ of the city. We should all applaud the students who researched, made and printed the QR Codes. They said that the QR Code, when scanned with a QR Code Reader will bring visitors, on their smartphones, to a Youtube video showing them a brief history of the place.

The students have done a bit of research about the roads too, which will show visitors and smartphone users how the roads were like back then, some of them were merely dirt roads and empty land lots.

Say, for instance, you are about enter a restaurant and you scan the QR Code, it might show you pictures of a land filled with nothing but trees and wild animals – what this means is that a decade ago, the building and skyscrapers weren’t even there to begin with!

The students are calling this their very special Geo Historian project but I think the authorities should give the students their resounding support for their creative thinking and inspiring effort. After all, the project is said to be a part of the Mystic River Historical Society’s fortieth anniversary.

And you know what? I foresee the fact even the locals will find the content interesting because, let’s face it, do we all really know everything about the city that we are living in? Even if we do, wouldn’t it be interesting to just jolt our memories a little when we are visiting our favorite general store to see what it was like twenty years ago?

I know I would.

DS Smith Packaging To Introduce QR Code For Reorders

marsha — Wed, 08 May 2013 07:27:07 +0000

If you have worked for large companies that deals with large and bulk purchases of stuff on a regular basis, you would know what it feels like to fill in the same form with the same exact information each and every time and then go through the same motion from week to week just to get your orders through. There is a lot of time wasted on repeating the procedures this way. DS Smith Packaging is going in the right direction by changing things up a little by letting their regular clients and customers re-order heavy duty packaging using a simple QR Code which will simplify and automate many of the usual steps.

The QR Code campaign is currently only offered under the company’s Industrial Division where customers can order their heavy duty packaging by using a smartphone to scan a QR Code.

The company plans to implement this re-ordering system by placing a QR Code on the box or on a pallet label. When customers scan the QR Code with their smartphone or other mobile devices equipped with a QR Code scanner, the reordering information that is completely unique to the customer and their ordering history will be automatically filled and sent directly to DS Smith Packaging immediately using the internet. This would simplify the ordering process because many of the mundane and repeated steps would have been completely automated. The process also eliminates the need to checking and double-checking of each order because the duplicate information is saved and encoded in the QR Code.

What we are looking at is a system that can cut ordering time, which can take hours if you take into consideration that manual ordering would need to be checked and approved by different people of authority (for safety purposes), right down to seconds. Once the officer in charge of the ordering obtains approval from their bosses, it will take them three to five seconds to complete the re-ordering process.

By automating the re-ordering process, customers not just save time but also shave off some hidden costs that usually occurs. DS Packaging creates an ability to receive customers’ orders instantly into their own system and schedule them in earlier too. The QR Code also eliminates errors and administrative time constraints.

As for whether QR Codes can be damaged, judging from the nature of the business which is packaging, loading and unloading, the process of which sometimes involves extensive damage to the exterior of the packaging. It was shown that despite extensive damage being done to QR Codes, they can still be properly scanned and used.

Budweiser Uses QR Codes to Help New Friends Connect on Facebook

admin — Mon, 29 Apr 2013 14:52:11 +0000

Budweiser Brazil is helping people get connected a lot more easily than before. If you are in a bar, the last thing you would want to be lugging around are pieces of paper and a pen. However, what if you meet the girl or guy of your dreams and you want to call him or her the next day?

The beer maker’s Brazilian arm has come up with a solution to that dilemma by coming up with what it calls the “Buddy Cup.”

The Buddy Cup has a QR code at the bottom of the cup. Once you get your own cup, you can scan the QR code and link the code to your Facebook account.

The Buddy Cup also has near-field communication chips on it. This way, when you meet somebody at the party or bar, you can just toast your Buddy Cups and add each other on Facebook.

How do you know it is working? There are LED lights at the top of the cup that will light up when data is being transmitted.

The Buddy Cup system goes through a smartphone application. The custom mobile app will post a Facebook status update that announces to your other friends that you have a new friend. The custom mobile app also takes care of sending invites on Facebook.

The Buddy Cups are being tested at various concerts, festivals and similarly huge events in the country.

There are no plans yet to have the Buddy Cups at bars in the United States.

This is a great way to use mobile technologies to your advantage. The QR code is very convenient. You probably have your Facebook profile linked to your smartphone, so it would be easier to use your smartphone to scan the code. The mobile app will handle the backend workings, making sure that you are connected to your new friend, while the NFC makes it much easier (and more natural looking too!) to trade information. Of course, you could probably use this at different events too and direct the QR code to different social media. This would be very useful, for example, if you were attending a business related event. You could link your LinkedIn profile to the Buddy Cup, rather than your personal Facebook profile.

Can Twitter and Facebook Give Youtube a Challenge?

marsha — Mon, 29 Apr 2013 07:20:37 +0000

As we all know, online social networking sites are all talking about how to scramble for the most ad dollars that are being thrown out there on the internet. As a matter of fact, it was reported that advertisers in the United States alone, will be throwing more than four billion dollars on digital video ads alone. Yes, on videos alone. When it comes to advertising on videos, we are, of course, talking about Youtube.

Twitter and Facebook are great about the whole online social networking and sharing thing and we often hit Twitter and Facebook for video content. Twitter does not, at this point in time, house its own video content so, it is reliant on sites like Youtube to bring in the links. Facebook has its own video content hosting but the number of people who chooses to upload their videos onto Facebook compared to those who continue to place their trust on Youtube is astoundingly clear that people trust and prefer to use Youtube.

From the Grapevine, I heard that some developers are trying to give Youtube a challenge and they might want a piece of the ad dollar pie as well. This, amidst the news of the launch of Twitter Music is absolutely euphoria for tech followers.

Tech experts estimated that out of one person who chooses to upload his or her video content onto Facebook, there are eight others out there who prefer to exclusively use YouTube and then share it on Facebook and/or Twitter. These are large brand names that they asked, mind you.

But some contend that there is change in wind direction as far as online videos is concerned. Unbeknownst to some, Twitter launched their ‘watch video from within a tweet’ feature and the strategic partnership team have also started pinning down agreements with large content sites like ESPN, Turner Broadcasting and many other mainstream media.

In fact, the Twitter team is quickly signing up major brand names to implement their co-branded content which will help promote LIVE content, news, tips and promotions via tweets.

As an early adopter of Twitter, this news is a bit of a surprise because we are slowly seeing a departure from Twitter’s early idea of being a means of communication between friends and followers. However, times is changing and no one can blame either Twitter or Facebook for changing their early day ideals for advertising options. Money talks, after all.

Twitter is making all the right moves nowadays and as far as I can see, if Facebook wants a piece of that pie, it has got to get a move on.