(keitai-l) Re: QR codes

Hi Michael,

Certainly my experience with Japanese handsets is limited given that I am in
the US. But we have developed QR code readers for several. Phones we have
seen either have a manual macro lens or in some cases provide an auto focus
lens. Do the phones that you refer to possibly have an auto focus lens so
there is no macro switch? 

An interesting point, a couple of weeks ago I was at CTIA, a DoCoMo employee
tried to demonstrate QR code reading to me in their booth. After three
failed attempts to read the code that was on her badge, I had to prompt her
to flip the macro switch on the demo phone. After that it finally worked. 

Jim
-----Original Message-----
From: keitai-l-bounce@appelsiini.net [mailto:keitai-l-bounce@appelsiini.net]
On Behalf Of Michael Sydenham
Sent: Thursday, April 20, 2006 2:27 AM
To: keitai-l@appelsiini.net
Subject: (keitai-l) Re: QR codes

Jim
 Since fixed focus
> lenses typically are set to 50cm - infinity (or there about) any code
> close
> up to the phone will not be in focus.


50cm may well be the average case outside Japan, but from my experience
using Japanese camera phones, the vast majority of them focus alot closer
than that (around 20cm) without using a macro setting. Anyway I agree
obviously focus is important, as is simply holding the camera steady enough
and square enough for the QR code to be successfully captured (some reader
apps sit there retaking the image until a successful 'take' is acquired).

A case in point, the best code imaging
> capabilities we ever saw in a phone was with the Mitac Mio which had a CIF
> 353x288 sensor. This is because the lens was so small.


I wonder if in that case you had to fill the frame with the code image,
which may not be as necessary using a higher res CCD (i.e. in that case you
could get away with not having to fill the entire frame with the code and
still get a successful take - that was my experience anyway - hence the
increased resolution has a benefit to relax the extreme macro requirement)
in addition to the benefit of increasing the block size.

> For example it is hard to provide business card details in a code that
does not fit on a business card

I don't know - it seemed adequate enough for Vodafone KK employees to put a
code in the corner of their business cards.

As for the QR codes being hard to use by consumers.. I agree with Gerhard. I
add that alot of advertising campaigns drove the use of QR codes - in many
occassions, scanning the code was the only way to participate. This drove
people that may have been previously uncomfortable with codes to come up to
speed, or otherwise miss out on the campaign. For younger users who insist
on being fashionably in-tune with keitai usages trends, I think most are
comfortable with how to use it.

Michael.


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