Amazon has released an updated version of its iPhone app which lets you search for items by scanning their barcodes with your phone’s camera. That means you can walk through a store, pick up an item, scan the barcode and find out if it’s cheaper to order it from Amazon, or read customer reviews all in a matter of seconds.
The Google Android version of Amazon’s mobile app has had this feature for a while, so I was actually a bit surprised to discover this morning that it’s a new feature for iPhone users. But it’s definitely a welcome addition.
Unfortunately, Amazon appears to have forgotten that the new iPod touch also has a camera. The Scan a barcode option doesn’t show up on the iPod touch. Hopefully a future update will remedy this problem — although to be fair, product barcode scanners are a lot more useful on the iPhone which has 3G data capabilities allowing you to get online and check prices almost anywhere — not just in locations where there’s a WiFi hotspot handy.
The Amazon mobile app for iPhone is available as a free download from the App Store.
via CNET
