How are QR Barcodes Different from Normal Barcodes?

A recent trend among small business is the intensive use of QR barcodes. QR barcodes are similar to barcodes in one sense; both of them contain information which can be read by a QR code reader.

Barcodes are single dimensional codes. The codes are represented by the bars and they are designed in only one direction, i.e., horizontal. They carry with them limited information. They are used only to track product information and they contain up to 20 numerical digits. 

When we compare barcodes with QR codes, they are really different. QR codes are two dimensional figures. They are spread across horizontally and vertically and they have a square appearance in contrast to barcodes which are rectangular in shape. The layout of these codes allows QR codes to contain more information than a barcode can possibly contain. QR codes can hold up to thousands of alphanumeric characters. The amount of information stored is the basic difference between barcodes and QR barcodes. 

Barcodes have been around for a decade. They have a large variety of uses in retail, manufacturing, transport and shipping industry. Common barcodes are printed on packaging at the grocery store and in other retail outlets. They are valuable at the point of sale and for managing inventory and raw materials. Barcodes have become common in shipping; to enable speed and accuracy in packages delivered. Barcodes are comparatively inexpensive and assist in speed, efficiency and accuracy. 

QR codes have been around for years. They are well suited for marketing purposes. QR codes are becoming more common to receive business cards. The idea behind using Quick Response code is easy and useful when applied correctly. For example, snap a picture of a code and mobile phone whisks you off to a web page and no typing is required. Isn’t it interesting? QR barcodes link offline information to online content and provide information to an offline experience.

The QR barcode is printed with a similar function to that of a normal product barcode. QR barcode does look different but that is simply because they contain a lot more information. Normal barcodes are only a series of numbers while QR barcodes are links to websites, numbers and text messages.

A typical barcode can store a maximum of 20 digits whereas a QR barcode can hold up to 7,089 characters. This makes the use of QR barcodes more attractive than barcodes. The basic difference between a QR barcode and a standard barcode is that the standard barcode is utilized to encode data on a horizontal plane whereas data is encoded horizontally and vertically on a QR barcodes.