> No one is talking about it. It feels like a meteorite is hitting the planet and no one is paying attention.<p>An unintentionally appropriate metaphor. How many of the ~17 meteorites that hit the planet per day do you pay attention to?
GS1 Datamatrix is what I see here locally (Switzerland) starting being used for fresh food like sandwiches which makes sense as it contains the sell by date. This allows them to quickly scan items and sort out what has expired or needs a discount because it's expiring soon.<p>Sadly food tracking apps still don't read these codes. They are vibe coding new features constantly but not working on adding what is actually important.<p>Yazio, im talking to you...
I work for a global consumer goods company - we print probably billions of (1d) bar codes on packs per year.<p>1d bar codes will go extinct, but only after every scanning system at every retailer has changed to recognize 2d bar codes/qr codes. This will likely take decades.<p>In the meantime, there will be a world where 2d bar codes and 1d bar codes will coexist on packs. With the additional confusion that many packs already have qr codes, either for consumer information or for internal tracking at the plant (batches for quality control), so we will probably have a little zoo of qr codes for a while, until they all finally can be merged.
Does encoding URLs in QR codes expose the scanners to quishing[0] attacks, such as bad actors sticking malicious QR codes over legit ones?<p>[0]: <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phishing#QR_code_phishing_(quishing)" rel="nofollow">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phishing#QR_code_phishing_(qui...</a>
Prediction.... 'about to', will mean over the next fewdecades. Retail product barcodes may be the fastest to go, over the next 2 decades. Other uses, like self printed labels for warehouse stock control will be here for the foreseeable. You might install a new Manufacturing Execution System in 20 years that supports it. But the Warehouse Management System and ERP don't...
Linear barcodes aren't going extinct any time soon.<p>Instead, we'll see an IPv6 style transition, with some early adopters and others having no reason to change over.<p>Makers of short-life products like pre-packaged sushi will be at the front of the line as they get real benefits from tracking dates and batches throughout the supply chain. Retailers accidentally selling expired sushi does genuine reputational damage.<p>Makers of long-life products, though? That 24-pack of cans of diet coke has its barcode printed by the <i>box</i> factory, not the <i>canning</i> factory. Putting the expiry date in the barcode would be a total hassle, for very little benefit. If forced to, they'll just print the QR code next to the linear barcode, with exactly the same data.<p>And even if a retailer has the market power to bully their suppliers - there's no motivation to do so for non-fresh products. All commercial scanners that can read QR codes can also read linear barcodes. Wal-Mart doesn't lose anything if their bleach supplier keeps using a linear barcode.
There are several things happening:<p>- Retail 2D codes are being rolled out at scale from next year already in many markets; 2d codes will be on many products in the supermarket. Preparations for this have been ongoing for quite long. Mostly scanners have been ready for this for some time. Most recent hardware should handle all this fine. Scanners that don't handle 2D will rapidly disappear.<p>- For industrial use, QR codes are already quite common. Use of QR codes is much less about replacing existing bar codes with QR codes and more about completely new uses for QR codes. You are right that most factories won't do invasive changes in their setups unless there's a good reason. But efficiency improvements tend to be a good reason.<p>I was at the Logimat fair in Stuttgart earlier this year. Lots of companies demonstrating scanners, sticker printing, camera modules, and all the rest. There are a lot of companies actively pushing all sorts of solutions around 2D codes.
If someone works out how to print a 2D code that can be read when wrapped on a 2mm diameter cable (with a single scan, no rolling/twisting of the cable as it's fibre optic) I'll be interested. For now, regular Code128 style codes are the only ones that work reliably on cables that small.
I'm glad to see this. Switching to a new standard barcode format that can hold more data and enable better tracking of physical consumer goods seems like the sort of thing that will have a large number of small benefits pervasively in the economy, one of the many small improvements of human technological civilization that in the aggregate results in a better world today than in the past.<p>I also like the aesthetics of QR codes better than traditional barcodes. They do kind of invoke the look of a Go board partway through a game, which is more visually interesting than the boring straight lines of the traditional barcode.
They mention QR code being a link and companies having to store data on their side.<p>Surely the actual data will be stored in the QR code and available offline
As I understand it, The key bits of data are in the QR code, they are just encoded as a URL - a highly structured URL that point of sale systems can decode without visiting the URL.<p>Doing it this way means the QR code is directly usable by consumers to get to a product info / marketing page, and directly usable by the POS systems.<p>Edit: I looked it up. An example URL:<p><a href="https://example.com/01/09521207311511/21/1234ABDE1235" rel="nofollow">https://example.com/01/09521207311511/21/1234ABDE1235</a><p>01 is a marker before the traditional barcode.<p>21 is a marker before the serial number.<p>There seems to be many other codes like 17 (expiry date) and 10 (batch number).
This is correct. The canonical reference is: <a href="https://ref.gs1.org/standards/digital-link/uri-syntax/" rel="nofollow">https://ref.gs1.org/standards/digital-link/uri-syntax/</a>
It just encodes...codes?<p>We have the technology to encode a short, plain human-readable description of an item into a 2D barcode, with born-on and/or sell-by dates, and/or things like serialization and/or lot codes, or other useful things.<p>Brevity is important; fields can have a standardized-but-flexible format that fits the particular item's needs.<p>A single-quantity small Fuji apple, picked today (October 3, 2026), with a PLU of 4129, and a magic-number lot code of b29sF, distributed by Stemilt Growers might present as such:<p><pre><code> Apple Fuji Sm,B0261003,P4129,Lb29sF,MStemilt
</code></pre>
A single 1.5 liter bottle of Crystal Geyser spring water with a UPC of 07514000500, a best-by date of January 12 of 2028, and a lot code of kek67:<p><pre><code> Water Spring 1.5l,D0280112,U07514000500,Lkek67,MCG
</code></pre>
We can even add more real information and still have less data to encode than:<p><pre><code> https://example.com/01/09521207311511/21/1234ABDE1235
</code></pre>
...but, I mean: A coded URL for a website that might be designed to avoid being forthcoming with information isn't necessarily any better for consumers, long-term, than the UPC we've had for over 50 years. It's still just a pointer that relates to <i>someone else's database</i>. It has no informational value on its own.
The advantage of using a hyperlink is that consumers do not need an application-specific decoder, they can use their standard reader. And manufacturers can provide additional data (in theory: user manuals, but in practice most likely 404s, tracking and ads).<p>As I understand it, fields are standardized. I don't think they contain the name of the product (I didn't read the spec), but the other info is there, so no need to hit the servers/db on other servers.<p>As for the quantity of data, Qr codes have special encoding modes depending on the content. The numeric mode uses 3.3 bits per digit, the alphanumeric 5.5 bits per character (45 characters in the set). Switching modes in the stream is supported, though it adds a few bits of overhead.<p>Looking at the examples, it looks like the scheme is not as efficient as it could be (pesky slashes, alphanumeric at the end), but that's not too bad either.
There's ways to shrink the bit cost down, for sure. The commas in my example are particularly expensive, for instance, since commas aren't part of QR's alphanumeric set.<p>It was just a quick expression of an idea, presented in the form of a gripe; it's not a formal specification.<p>As to consumers, and their hardware: People still get new phones and features can be (and sometimes actually are) added to existing phones. I'm not too worried about it as a constraint; things would catch up soon enough.
<i>> We can even add more real information and still have less data to encode</i><p>The reason they're so verbose comes from a few facts.<p>First of all, it's an <i>existing</i> logistics labelling standard, they've just replaced brackets with forward slashes and put a domain name on the front. So <a href="https://example.com/01/09521207311511/21/1234ABDE1235" rel="nofollow">https://example.com/01/09521207311511/21/1234ABDE1235</a> is just a QR code version of those huge barcodes like (01)09521207311511(21)1234ABDE1235 you see on cases of products in the supermarket.<p>Second of all, the standard doesn't limit itself to a <i>single</i> date, so they can't identify dates with a simple ,D prefix. It's a kitchen sink standard [1] with 16 different types of date (production date, due date, packaging date, sell by date, best before date, expiration date, release date, first freeze date, harvest date, production date <i>and time</i>...) and just as many options for sizes and weights - so the identifier can be up to 4 digits. /11/ or /8008/<p>The third thing to know is QR codes pack different alphabets at different densities. Numbers at 3.5 bits per character, upper case letters and some symbols at 5.5 bits per character, ASCII at 8 bits per character. So the 13 characters of of "Apple Fuji Sm" uses about as much space <i>in a QR code</i> as a 29-digit number like "12345678901234567890123456789"<p>Fourth, you've replaced the 14-digit GTIN with an 11-digit UPC and replace the 13-digit serial number with a 5-digit lot code :)<p>IMHO the standard isn't going to take over the world, and anyone who says "Barcodes are about to go extinct" doesn't know what they're talking about. But it's not the information density, it's other reasons.<p>[1] <a href="https://ref.gs1.org/ai/" rel="nofollow">https://ref.gs1.org/ai/</a>
Absolutely - I 100% expect the links to lead to feel-good marketing fluff at best and end up being useless for consumers, but the stated goals are at least good.<p>It's just that, sadly, we can no longer have nice things.
And even spookier: Tracking.<p>If items have unique (ie serialized) codes, then it's safe to assume that those codes will be recorded at purchase (since that's kind of the whole point), along with who bought them (yay discount cards and cashless society).<p>Now the contents of my pantry describe things like where I've been, when I was there, and/or who I hang out with. Fun times!<p>Even with cash and without discount cards: One random food label out of a recycling bin can relate all the way to photos of the purchaser's face at checkout, track them walking to their car, and see where that car went. This could happen months or years down the road.<p>Most of those pieces are already in-place: Our photos are already recorded alongside of our transaction details -- that's been going on in POS world for a long time. Tracking people to their vehicle is a function of Avigilon camera systems. Tracking the car itself is the primary purpose of Flock.<p>All that's missing right now is serialization records and a centralized database.<p>I'm sure that nobody will ever finish fitting these things together into a cohesive system and that nobody would ever use it with ill intent.<p>It probably would never happen anyway, since there's not a single retailer on Earth who would ever exchange this kind of data for an upgrade to their in-store surveillance systems and a monthly check. ;)<p>(And we <i>still</i> don't get directly-useful consumer information into or out of these new 2D barcodes. I love losing.)
Instead, the URL should lead to the actual label in vector format, and most elements of the design should be clickable links.
It's possible to let the chat read the QR code and help the user with it.
QR codes are just a type of barcode...
If the Pamper's app is anything to go by, the QR codes will fail to be read, and the older "text recognition of the printed code" will keep working.
I recall all the chat, maybe twelve to fifteen years back when Asian use of QRs took off, thanks to ready availability of mobiles. There were impassioned arguments that it might be fine in those markets but it would never catch on in the West because it was not appealing to consumers who wouldn't want them all over magazines and menus. I never bought that, as fairly quickly the phones came with built in recognition and it was just a matter of time. We saw at table ordering thanks to COVID and many products added QR for consumers even if the shops hadn't pushed it (in the UK at least)
Context: Back then the user experience was terrible, cameras and phones were so slow that scanning even one code was a painful chore.
Been a huge fan of QR codes since the beginning. URLs are awesome, and QR codes are a way of putting links in the real world. Obviously awesome! There was a dark period in the early 2010s where everyone I said this to sent me a link to an empty tumblr "people scanning at codes", but I'm glad they've gotten more traction. Took a trip to Santiago this past week, and they are ubiquitous: from room service and connecting to WiFi to menus in every restaurant. Super cool.
QR Codes were heavily promoted during the global lockdown.
Well, „classic“ barcodes have the advantage that they can span the entire product length. That makes it easier for me at Self-checkout counters. Hard to do with QR codes :)
At family mart in China, some of the pastries are in bags with a QR code and a bar code. If it accidentally scans the QR code the self checkout (not in English) goes into a weird mode and I have to get help. So I just learned to cover the QR code for any packaging that had both it and a bar code on the same side.
This doesnt happen in English mode? I guess it tries to interpret a payment code but then obviously throws an error. Protip you can scan your products and then show payment code, or tap nfc, no need to touch the screen at any point (except for 18+ products)
Yeah. But this is a problem this can fix, in theory. Instead of having multiple codes you could just have one with the info for every piece of the chain that needs it.
QR codes are a bit more fragile than barcodes though. A scratch or a stain can make them unreadable.<p>Are there studies on how that might affect logistics?
Not at all. I worked apart time job delivering parcels that were scanned with a specialized bar code scanner. Most of the parcels had dual barcode/QR codes for the tracking number. You would be surprised how much damage could be done to the QR codes before they were unreadable. Even if the QR code had small folds over itself the codes would still read. The barcodes were unreadable with the slightest amount of damage or ink bleed.
Isn't it the other way around? QR codes have built-in error correction whereas barcodes typically don't (beyond a single check-digit, which is more error detection rather than correction, and even that depends on the information being encoded) so can sustain a surprisingly large amount of damage and still be readable.<p>Indeed, I often see QR codes which have been deliberately damaged for the visual impact (e.g. chunks missing to make a pleasing shape, or place an arbitrary logo in the centre). They still work due to the error correction but now there's no redundancy left and one additional piece of damage might literally make it unreadable.
QR codes will not likely be used to their potential. They are being used as 1D bar codes. I have seen products with several QR codes all over different parts and in the manuals. Usually if you scan them going to a useless homepage or a manual that does not specifically refer to the thing being scanned without an exhaustive search.<p>Remember the most important fact about these codes: Nobody cares.
Sure,nobody cares.<p>But if my phone automatically tells me about stuff in my fridge :<p>-The cheese has expired or about to be expired<p>-There's a recall on that baby formula<p>That's useful.<p>Or if uses those smart carts at the supermarket, it can tell me:<p>-this isn't safe with my peanut allergy<p>-this isn't ethically sourced<p>-the expiry date is too short
We must create a barcode reservation to preseve the last of the species before they go extinct!<p>Hopefully they can reproduce and ensure the survival of their species.
What a bad piece. Optical is obsolete. Decathlon (here in France at least) has RFID on all their products, they're used as anti-theft, automatic tilling: you just put them in a box at the register and it knows what it is (also kills the chips once paid) and very likely they're used all along the logistic chain.
Putting a chip on everything sounds wasteful and worse for the environment than a printed piece of paper. Not the right direction to go in.
Decathlon does it in every country, not just France. Same with Uniqlo and a few others, but it's still only very large chains that can afford it
Too pricey for food, it’s cheaper to print.
Merchandise point-of-sales tags isn't the only use of barcode or QR codes. Hospitals aren't going to start putting RFID for all equipment, files, and patients.
I am quite sure they still use optical on the German shops.
Nope, at least the Berlin shop is on RFID on all products.
Not in Berlin, not in Hamburg
And what is average price of one product in Decathlon compared to Lidl? Apples and oranges. How do you put RFID on fruit, vegetables and pastry btw. or you propose wrapping everything in unnecessary packaging?
So, depending on the place you don't weigh your vegetables in the aisles anymore, you know: low trust society and such. Either the cashier does it or yourself under the eye of the automated register CCTV. For places that still does they can just migrate to do it at the register and save the price of the barcode stickers and the printer. Pastries are either in boxes already barcoded so just stick an RFID instead or counted at the register by the cashier or yourself too. And nowadays RFID stickers cost nothing at that scale.
Nah…<p>Barcodes are easy and cheap to read in a way that QR codes aren’t (particularly complex ones)<p>Any old cheap laser scanner will read a barcode and they can be made at large sizes e.g. how Aldi use them on products in the UK to make self scan faster<p>QR codes need a camera, their complexity goes up as more data is encoded in them so require better cameras especially is high speed situations<p>They both have places in the world and will co-exist for years to come
consider digimarc barcode too. qr code is nice, but nicer is it if you even not see it.
JAB Code (color bar code) can fit more data into the same space: <a href="https://jabcode.org/" rel="nofollow">https://jabcode.org/</a>
It's not easy to print in color on some products (e.g. products that use thermal printer labels).
I love how the website shows examples and comparisons with the codes it claims to be better than.
I don't see how this is better, my first thoughts: more difficult to print, more difficult to scan, vulnerable to light shifts (imagine trying to scan a can with colored bar code in a club with flashing lights) and impossible to print in some technolgies.<p>Bar code won't go away exact for the reason it's super simple to scan and print. Even QR codes can't stand that (and if you tried scanning yourself grocery in soft bag with barcode in the corner which gets crumpled you know what I mean).
I think this is great! i've long wanted a future where i can stock my fridge and cupboards with goods and scan the barcodes in and be tracking what their expirations are to better manage when i need to restock or throw things out
They aren't. Sage.
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Fun fact: QR codes are about 80% depleted. /s
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Not what I see in shop at all, I can't think of literally ONE product I bought which wouldn't have barcode.<p>Reminds me of RFID labels pipe dream.
> Reminds me of RFID labels pipe dream.<p>Visit a decathlon when you have time, they’ve been using that since a long time, it’s neat
Yeah, shopping at decathlon feels like stealing honestly. Uniqlo has them too iirc
Yes I do really like their self checkout too. Just throw 12 items in the box, quick check and recap but everything was recognized. Pay by card and leave. Its the only self checkout I've experienced which don't make me angry :)
In the UK I've noticed some items having 2D barcodes instead of 1D ones lately. Of course, all the scanners have been able to read them all for years now. They're not all QR codes, though. Other 2D barcodes exist.
I am the creator of <a href="https://www.closient.com/" rel="nofollow">https://www.closient.com/</a> - a GS1 Digital Link Resolver (still building it, be gentle).<p>I have been deep into this space for a fair bit of time now. The real power is in Recalls and Return Fraud. There a ton of other nice things that this will empower of course. AMA - I will do my best to answer.<p>For some other stuff to read about how they can help have a poke at <a href="https://blog.closient.com/" rel="nofollow">https://blog.closient.com/</a><p>Not advertising - just trying to get the word out on 2D codes and RFID and what they provide consumers.<p>For those saying "Why not something else?" - it comes down to adoption - QR was just the more popular winner. While the register/till is where most of the scanning is happening the QR is just a normal URL and consumer can scan them.