Scanbuy has released a new version of its barcode scanning application for the Android, BlackBerry and iPhone operating systems. The app uses the phone’s built-in camera to scan barcodes and perform some action on the device — i.e. show video or photo, dial a phone number, hop over to a web page, and so on.
Even before this release, ScanLife was working with popular 2D barcode formats such as Datamatrix, EZcode and QR. The new version adds 1D barcodes like UPC, EAN and ISBN to the mix, allowing users to point their phone to some product and get a list of price comparisons and consumer reviews from multiple online retailers like Amazon. Moreover, Scanbuy promised to include more retailers and additional features in the future releases of ScanLife.
And for the record, SnanLife application comes preloaded on many mobile phones sold around the world. Among the handset makers that have agreed to offer ScanLife out-of-box to its customers are Sony Ericsson, Samsung, LG, whereas Motorola has even invested some money in the company. Scanbuy’s carrier partners include Sprint and Telefonica.