Intelliscanner Mini: Fun With Barcodes
You can lead people to organization tools, but you can’t make them use ‘em. Whether it’s the filing cabinet that you drowned in random piles, or your computer desktop glaring back at you with the shame of a thousand strewn-about icons- maybe you like your life frustrating. Not so much here since herding writers is like herding cats, and anything that can make life a little easier is looked upon kindly.
Anyway, this is all a long way of saying that, for the right person, the Intelliscanner Mini is an ideal gift. It’s not too big, nicely priced, well-packaged, and is something that even the most gadget-collecting person is unlikely to have. It manages to accomplish something that filing never will- seem pretty fun and futuristic at the same time. Unfortunately, there is a large degree of the population for whom this gift may be less appreciated, and we suspect that it is those very same people who likely need it most.
Alas, such is the way of things- but we pity those who cannot appreciate the barcode, one of the twentieth century’s most enduring and replicated artworks. ‘Asset tracking’, ‘inventory databases’- it sounds boring perhaps, but it’s surprisingly easy to use and pretty helpful. Basically, you get a cute tin containing custom barcode tags for use on items that don’t already have them, along with a slick portable barcode scanner and the software that ties it all together. We were impressed with the reader- it’s solid, about the size of your car keyless entry remote, and remembers all of the codes you scan in a session- then you just connect it to your Mac or PC via USB and it updates and synchronizes with your saved collection. The batteries last for quite a while between USB charging sessions, and the scanner emits that satisfying beep that should also go down in the history books as an iconic sound.
You can pretty quickly build an index of various items you own- things like books, games, CDs and DVDs are supported by default. Specialty items like wines and comics are also specifically supported by separate packages, but you’ll need to pay a bit more for the version that comes with those extra features. You can easily set a status for an item, allowing you to note when you’ve loaned an item out, allowing you to see in cold, hard, black and white the record left behind by the traitors that are your friends. You can also post your collection online, to their site. One great use for the Intelliscanner is a home inventory for insurance purposes, so you have notes on everything in case of disaster. Unfortunately, not all bar codes are recognized, leading to some annoying data entry work, and the general household ‘Assets’ software is also part of the more expensive package.
It’s the best barcode scanner we’ve used, and a far advance over the old CueCat methods. We tried it out in several areas- the grocery store, for instance, was a good place to check out their nifty iPhone app- as long as we could remember to scan things, then we could figure out if we actually had milk and eggs while at the store. Only 10 special tags were included though, and we would’ve liked more- along with integration with other packages such as QuickBooks. They offer the Intelliscanner SOHO for more advanced purposes though.
If a database of your life sounds interesting, fun, or necessary, then get the Intelliscanner Mini (or have someone get it for you). The media version costs a totally decent $179, and the complete version with all of the databases runs $249 (a bit too large of a price difference in our opinion). But they make some nifty specialty models, including the Wine Collector version in a neat wooden crate (that adds to the cost apparently, as it runs $279). Available directly from their website.
