It’s a blogpost about QR Codes FOR A CHANGE
I’ve been thinking (ooh careful! I HATE THAT JOKE SO MUCH) about QR Codes: the most unelegant thing since Die Another Day.
Walking past a new restaurant this morning, with a new menu on the window. wouldn’t it be good to see that menu on my phone? Ooh IMPULSIVE CONSUMER. The menu didn’t have the QR code, but EVEN if they did i would’ve had to extract phone from pocket, find QR reading app amongst apps foldered ‘Rarely Used’, hold phone at window and hope it comes back with the stuff. It’s a HASSLE #firstworldpains.
But if Google Goggles continues to improve, i can see a much more exciting way to search for things, without QR codes: by taking a picture of the building or the sign. Google currently offers voice search as nearly default part of Android, which is used by 0.0001% of users cos it’s not good enough yet.
But they’re getting great at recognising buildings, and photos of words. The technology is there. Instead of ugly QR codes, wouldn’t it great if you just hold-down search key, take the picture of the e.g. new restaurant sign, picture, advertising hoarding etc. and Google serves you results based on that?
I predict this will come in with future Android versions as a default search function (maybe v. 2.800 Wimpy Burger or 2.9 X-FUDGE)
In the meantime, QR codes should also be rebranded as Sprockets, to give them a more fun edge.
