SMore Barcode Scanner 101: How to Choose Your Specific Barcode Reader?

Types of barcode scanners

In case of use scenarios, barcode readers can be divided into two kinds which are industrial barcode readers and business barcode readers. Those two have several major differences. To be more specific, industrial barcode readers need to take the specialty of the industrial environment into consideration. For example, high speed production lines or a damp and dusty environment require higher standards for the material's sturdiness. While barcode readers for business use in daily life are more familiar to us, such as in supermarkets and restaurants for paying bills. In those conditions, the standard of barcode readers' material is relatively lower due to the clearer and easier-to-scan codes compared to those in the industry.

As for the form of barcode readers, there are more specific types. Industrial barcode readers can be generally divided into fixed and handheld ones. Fixed barcode readers are more commonly used in conditions like assembly lines in factories. And handheld barcode readers provide extreme convenience for workers in the industry such as storage and logistics where workers need to scan tons of codes in time. Barcode readers for business use have even more types, such as handheld, wireless, wearable mini-finger ones, etc. You can choose one based on the specific needs you require.

Physical characters of barcode scanners

Plenty of physical characters on a piece of the technical specification may confuse you. The following 3 parameters can help you make a better decision.

IP ratings: the ingress protection (IP) ratings are officially designed by IEC and are commonly used for rating the performance of electric and electronic deterioration or malfunction in a different environment. IP consists of 2 numerals. The former numeral represents the ability of dust-proof and protection of possible invasion of other objects. The latter one represents the level of water-proof and humidity-proof. On a scale of 0-6 and 0-8 for each numeral, the higher the number, the higher the level. A high IP rating barcode reader is the right choice if you’re facing a strict industrial environment. A barcode reader can have a high performance in an environment facing conditions such as damaging chemicals and extreme temperatures.

Reading rate: it’s an essential factor in both industrial barcode readers and business barcode readers. There are possibilities when codes are scratched or damaged even for medal codes in conditions such as assembly lines. During storage and logistics, codes may get damaged because of humidity and transport mistakes, etc. Even in daily environments where things aren’t that strict, codes can’t be 100% perfect all the time. Therefore, you need a barcode reader to deal with harsh environments or hard-to-read codes.

Decode range: barcode readers are designed to work in a specific range called decode range. The factors that affect the decode range of barcode readers are code type, size of the codes and the distance between a code and a barcode reader. Here, we will show you 2 technical parameters commonly described in a technical specification as an illustration. The first one is “Code X”. It means the type of code to which barcode readers adapt. The second one is “mil”. It is a unit of length for codes. The description “Code X (5 mil)” means that the decode range of the barcode reader is suitable for a code that is Code X and 5 mil in length. Usually, one barcode reader has several decode ranges for different codes and lengths.

Each type of barcode scanners has different decode ranges suitable for different situations. If you have some short-range code scanning requirements, such as the decode range in a factory which is relatively short, then the short-range code barcode scanner is more suitable for you. On the other hand, a long assembly line or logistics transportation that requires rapid scanning in large quantities and in a relatively long distance need the technical support of long-range code barcode scanners.

SmartMore has various excellent barcode scanners which have flexible choices of decode ranges and are able to fast scan and read codes. The data can be traced back to each part in the whole process of production. SmartMore has a high-standard performance for all those mentioned situations. Whether you need barcode scanners for assembly lines or small-scale businesses, your needs will be satisfied no matter what kind of situation you’re in with SmartMore. For more product information, please clike Best 2D Wireless QR Code Barcode Scanner (smartmore.com) to find out the products we can provide! 

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