Joe

Reading barcodes on your BlackBerry

Posted by Joe on January 2, 2009 | 43 comments | Filed under : BlackBerry Applications

When I wrote about five applications we wish were made for the BlackBerry last week, one thing I mentioned was a barcode scanner. A commenter was kind enough to point me to NeoReader, a comparable but not well known application for the BlackBerry. Excited, I decided to test out the application right away. So for those of you wanting to know a bit more about this application, read on.

To get the NeoReader, go to http://get.neoreader.com/ in your BlackBerry browser. You’ll go through the download process. Once done, open up your camera application and go to Options. If your picture size is set to Large, you’ll have to bring it down to Small. That’s the setting compatible with NeoReader. You can then open the application, which will prompt you to set the permissions. It allows a lot, and I know some people might not be comfortable with that. Still, it’s the only way to use the application.

After the app starts up, I suggest going to Preferences and turning the audio off. You don’t want to hear the shrill sound the program makes if a barcode read fails. From there, select Click, which will bring up your camera application. So get shooting. Find a barcode and scan it.

This is where I hit a problem. I couldn’t get the camera to focus on the barcode enough, and each time the scan was rejected. I did this under both the CFL light in my office and the florescent light in my kitchen. Multiple attempts in each position failed. I even wiped off the camera lens. Still nothing. I’m sure other people have gotten it to work, but with my Curve it was a no go.

Thankfully, you can take advantage of the application by manually entering the barcode. It might not be as cool as just taking a picture of it, but hey, it’s the same thing in the end. From there you can compare prices, read reviews, and find similar items.

Has anyone else had success with this app? If so, is there some kind of trick, or is my camera just not good enough?

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1 bahij November 12, 2011 at 3:04 am

can anybody tell me plz

2 bahij November 12, 2011 at 3:03 am

yeh how can i download it i have a curve 8520

3 Gloria September 26, 2011 at 1:46 pm

Hi! Thanks sooooooo much for these instructions! I have a BlackBerry Storm 2 and I downloaded the application, rebooted my Blackberry and it worked perfectly, the first time, not a problem at all!

4 David September 3, 2011 at 2:08 am

I had the BB 8900 and moved to the 9300 after the screen cracked. The 9300, though cuter and faster has a crumier camera. The camera will on do 2 Megapixel, that’s not enough for the barcode. My 3 year old 8900 will work perfectly b/c it had 3.2 Megapixel camera. Face it BB is just cheap junk!!

5 K Winston August 18, 2011 at 3:02 pm

I just downloaded this app and while it didn’t work the first time, it did the second time. The shrill sound the program makes when it doesn’t work is annoying so I appreciated the warning.

6 jmd August 5, 2011 at 6:07 am

Somebody can try putting reading glass in front of camera!

7 Candy July 12, 2011 at 8:11 pm

I just downloaded the neoreader for my bb 3g 9330. Worked on the first try! Excellent! If you have the 9330 it will say that it’s not compatible, just click the find another phone and use the bb 8520 I think it was..they are so similar it won’t matter! I love this app…thanks!

8 CJ July 3, 2011 at 7:10 pm

I have a BB Curve 9300 3g and I have not found a upc or qr reader to work on it yet been looking for a whie,,but nothing works..
I don’t have Auto Focus on my camera..So if anyone has a sugestion please let me know.

Thank you

9 mark February 25, 2011 at 1:43 pm

Worked perfectly on my Torch. Thanks so much!

10 Mahmood February 13, 2011 at 6:45 am

I tried the software and is really peice of junk. It fails on 90% of the tries!

11 Butterflyfreek December 12, 2010 at 8:51 pm

Downloaded on to my Tour 9630 and it works great! I have had no problems, other than now and again i may have to take a photo twice, but that has only happened a couple of times. All in all a 4 out of 5 in my opinion.

12 TNK August 15, 2010 at 8:33 am

I recently changed my BB device from 9000 to 9700. The NeoReader app worked on 9000 but not on 9700. NeoReader seemed not support 9700 at this time, according to the website of neoreader.

To use NeoReader on 9000, keeping appropriate distance from objects (prevent defocusing) will makes successful scanning.

13 John July 7, 2010 at 12:33 pm

I downloaded Neoreader and found it a total wast of time! The software did NOT work at all on my blackberry bold 9700. 1 first turn off the camera flash. 2 turn off all above lighting.
LOL in an office. And after doing all that the software still could not find its own a*** with the web. NOT for me!

14 Adiga-Prince July 2, 2010 at 6:19 pm

Guys,
i have the 9700 Bold2,
first it was not working… in fact it didnt work at all… then i had an idea, because i carry a Nokia E90 as well, and there was a barcode i wanted to read using thee blackberry (i used to read both 1D & 2D barcodes using the E90) then, the BB was not working, althought the camera has AF !!! finaly, i took a picture of the barcode using the E90 and i brought the BB to read it from the E90 screen and it was perfect!!!
i dont know why it happened like this… but it worked! – for me, i have no problem either ways… i always carry the E90 with me :)

Cheers!
Koshhamaqwa

15 kk June 26, 2010 at 7:38 pm

You have to have a campera phone with Auto-Focus for the reader to work properly.

16 rudi March 6, 2010 at 5:52 am

i have a bb storm.. and it works for me… so for u storm users.. take a better look at ur phone… coz it has the application on it to scan it..

17 Tim Maclennan January 10, 2010 at 9:14 pm

Scanlife uses the auto – focus and supports most barcode formats. You do however need to use the camera button

Also if you have got blackberry messenger press the black berry button and then click on scan a group barcode. All you need to do then is hover the bb over the barcode, the camera will take a picture when the focus is good enough to decode automatically. Down side is it only supports 2D barcodes so will not work with product barcodes

Hope this is any use to anyone.

does any one know if scanlife is going to be updated to be automatic like bb messenger or if there are any applications that accept universal barcodes that take shots automatically like bb messenger

Thanks

Tim

18 John December 28, 2009 at 12:26 pm

So, is there an update available for the Sprint 8350i to update the camera from a fixed focus to an auto focus. Edocrab works well with the Tour’s ability to focus on the barcode. Is there some type of camera support updates?

19 canelmas December 10, 2009 at 8:58 am

Technically, i mean programatically it’s not possible to take an auto-focused ‘snapshot’ picture. The app must invoke the Camera application of the Blackberry and then process the saved(to be deleted after) picture.
I tried the app, my Javelin doesn’t auto focus either..Good luck.

20 De December 2, 2009 at 4:28 pm

Just loaded this into my 8350i. I have not been able to scan the barcode but typing the numbers in has worked. I am happy with that for now.

21 Wolfman November 21, 2009 at 10:37 am

I just downloaded the app onto my Storm. It would not work no matter what was tried. Don’t bother with it.

22 Dreveron October 13, 2009 at 8:20 pm

Don’t waste your time with this application if you have a storm.
Focusing the camera is imposible.

I found another scanning application in Blackberry Apps name edocrab that works much better. It focus well, search the web, give you prices and reviews. And it is FREE.

23 james October 10, 2009 at 8:22 pm

its works when scanning the barcode you have to hit enter the button right under del

24 Mike2 October 8, 2009 at 8:35 am

Tried NeoReader, BeeTagg, and ScanLife with a BB Tour. The camera does autofocus, and both “line” barcodes and 2d barcodes come in crystal clear in the picture, but all programs fail to ever read the line barcodes successfully. How can the iPhone make this so easy and yet a BlackBerry with an autofocus 3.2mp camera fail so miserably?

25 Robert August 26, 2009 at 1:30 pm

Worked with my Curve 3810, Only the 2D codes ofcourse, wich you can generate yourself at the Neoreader site

26 Mike July 29, 2009 at 1:02 am

With the new BB Tour’s camera I believe it does do auto focus … maybe this will work for it ?

27 Whomiga June 27, 2009 at 8:20 pm

If they allowed for the Autofocus on the Storm, it should work – the Storm version apparently doesn’t even try to use the auto-focus on the Storm and apparently the focus when the auto-focus isn’t used is impossible to get anything in sharp enough focus to use.

28 Man in the Middle May 20, 2009 at 9:09 pm

Still not available for the Storm.
The web site works well for keying in the codes

29 SNi April 21, 2009 at 4:26 pm

Tried with BB bold and codes generated at neoreader web site and at nokia web site. Success most of the time (75%) It is true that the ‘failure’ signal is really annoying

30 SantaClaus February 23, 2009 at 6:02 am

I was trying to use it on a Bold. Same result, even with 2D Codes. It only worked once with one of the sample codes on their page….

31 bassthumper February 3, 2009 at 1:25 pm

Hang on a bit the technology is there for 10 codes. We use cam scanners installed in Moto Pocket PC’s on 10 codes and 20 codes. Give it a while and it will surely hit the Berry,s

32 barcodeguy January 14, 2009 at 6:53 pm

I’ve used this application, and its a function of focal distance. Try holding the Blackberry about an inch off the page, then start increasing the distance from the camera to the barcode. I believe the focal distance on a 1″ square 2D code is around 5″. You can see a description of another camera barcode reader at our review of the Motorola MC75.

33 streetstylz January 5, 2009 at 12:20 pm

The Blackberry has no macro focus, which is what you will need in order to read a 1D UPC barcode. The same goes for the iPhone. That being said, the NeoReader does a great job reading 2D Data Matrix, Aztec, and QR codes.

34 Chad January 5, 2009 at 11:59 am

It has to be a 2D Barcode, made to communicate. Scanning random regular barcodes will not work.

35 tevansny January 4, 2009 at 3:57 pm

tried app on storm. says app not avalible for storm

36 thekruser January 4, 2009 at 12:22 pm

I was excited as hell to see this app out there; however, it is not available for the 8220. Bummer!

37 AsmarM January 4, 2009 at 2:06 am

I just tried on my storm and as of yet it is not compatible.

38 DavidB January 3, 2009 at 10:27 am

Yeah, I thought the Curve camera was fixed focus, not auto focus???

I wonder if anyone has tried this on a Storm?

39 DaFD January 3, 2009 at 1:02 am

iirc, it only works with 2D barcodes (the ones with all of the squares), and not 1D barcodes (the ones that have the bars)

40 Thomas Magsaysay January 2, 2009 at 9:57 pm

I would figure that it would be very hard to get a normal BlackBerry camera to work with this application. I had a G1 briefly for testing and I used the barcode scanner on that phone. The G1 has auto focus so it did work, but for some barcodes, such as smaller ones it was harder for the camera to focus on each individual line in the barcode, which it would not end up scanning. With new BlackBerries such as the Storm and Curve 8900, this application should work much better due to the auto focus feature on the camera (when it is available). I guess neoreader needs to be updated for BlackBerries. Here is one I found on CrackBerry Forums http://www.beetagg.com/supportedphones/#Blackberry seems to be supported by more phones and is said to work better.

41 Michael Quinlan January 2, 2009 at 12:05 pm

I didn’t try the app, but did take a look at my Curve’s ability to focus on a bar code, getting close enough for the bar code to almost fill the screen. The fixed-focus lens is just not going to give a clear picture when the subject is only 2 inches away.

A large picture size may allow you to get far enough away from the subject to get a clear picture while still maintaining enough resolution on the area containing the bar code for this to work, but that I can still see the app being useful as is.

42 Matt Dionne January 2, 2009 at 9:58 am

I have a curve and the same thing happened. The camera couldn’t focus on the barcode enough, and each time the scan did not work.

43 Matt Dionne January 2, 2009 at 9:41 am

I am downloading NeoReader now. I’ll let you know how it goes.

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