Stalker is intrigued by reports that a replacement for the black and white stripes of the traditional barcode has been outlined by US researchers.
The so called bokodes can hold thousands of times more information than their striped cousins and can be read by a standard mobile phone camera.
The 3mm-diameter (0.1 inches), powered tags could be used to encode nutrition information on food packaging or create new devices for playing video games.
They could be used in consumer applications, such as supermarkets, where products could be interrogated with a shopper's mobile phone.
For example, they could be used to encode nutritional information or pricing offers. "One to the side may say 'hey, look at me, I'm a dollar cheaper'," said one of the researchers. Taking a picture would also allow people to compare lots of different products quickly.
It all sounds very high tech and high falutin’ – no doubt though if bokodes are the future, the mushroom industry will be among the first to adopt the new technology.
