iOS 11 is gaining a number of new features including built-in filters and Live Photo edits, but developers have noticed another feature — an integrated QR or Quick Read code scanner.
QR codes are unique graphics that link to a website or other information source, including such data as contact details to Wi-Fi log-in details, but, for iOS users, they require downloading an app to read them. iOS 11 could change that, as developers have spotted the ability to scan a QR code inside the native camera app.
The QR code reader in iOS 11 knows when it’s a WiFi network and offers to join. pic.twitter.com/pCHwGi1abF
— Dayton Lowell (@daytonlowell) June 5, 2017
In the software update, the native camera app can read the code, and displays the data automatically in a pop-up notification, no app download necessary. The feature is new to iOS 11, which is slated for release sometime this fall.
While the native feature is new for iOS, users don’t necessarily need an app dedicated entirely to the task of scanning codes anymore. Google’s Chrome on iOS launched an in-app QR scanner earlier this year. Shapchat also launched a similar “snapcode” that allows users to generate and read QR codes, while both Snapchat and Twitter allow users to turn their profiles into QR codes, eliminating the typing to search for new profiles to follow.
QR codes have been around for a few years — and seem to have faded in and out of popularity. A survey back in 2012 when the codes were popping up in multiple paces showed that 97 percent of respondents didn’t know what a QR code was. While the QR code is a tech that’s faded from the limelight, a Scanbury study showed a growth of QR scans of 7.5 percent in 2015.
QR codes are one of several ways that cameras and object recognition technology are taking on tasks normally left up to a keyboard, alongside tech from Google Lens to in-app barcode scanners. Whether or not QR codes will stick around, iOS users will soon be able to get rid of one more app — and still retain the ability to scan the codes.
Two new highly requested iCloud plugins just got added to ChatGPT, giving people who rely on Apple’s Mail and Calendar services a way to search emails, check appointments, and manage their schedules directly through the chatbot.
The integration is rolling out to all ChatGPT plans, including the free tier. You can access it on the web, desktop, and iOS.
Google Play is borrowing one of the Nintendo Switch’s most useful little tricks. A new Sidekick tool called Playbacks captures a short clip after something interesting has already happened, sparing players from running a screen recorder throughout an entire game.
Playbacks is part of Google Play Store v53.8 and keeps saved clips on the phone. Google first announced it earlier this month, but the new Play Store update marks its arrival for players. Anyone who has watched a perfect win vanish because the record button came too late already understands the appeal.
Samsung’s scandal over its Game Optimizing Service, or GOS, has returned with a bill attached. South Korea’s Fair Trade Commission has tentatively fined the company 20.1 billion won, or about $15.1 million, over gaming claims made for the Galaxy S21, Galaxy S22, and Tab S8.
The regulator says Samsung promoted the devices as gaming powerhouses without disclosing that GOS placed preset CPU and GPU limits on certain demanding games. Samsung disputes that conclusion, calling GOS a legitimate way to manage heat.