If you don’t know what’s cool about the Honeywell XL Thermal Transfer Labels, please read below.

What is it?

• 4” x 6” Thermal Transfer Label with a thinner liner.
• 1,500 labels per roll vs standard 1,000
• 3” core and 8” outer diameter.

Benefits:

• Thinner liner = more labels & less weight per roll.
• Less time changing rolls.
• Less to order.
• Saves on freight costs and storage space (6,000 rolls/case versus standard 4,000/case).
• Environmentally friendly without a price premium.
• Can be used with Zebra Thermal Transfer printers.

For a quote on the Honeywell XL Thermal Transfer Labels, contact one of our Barcodes, Inc. representatives.

Trigger Toggle mode is a newer feature that lets you quickly hit the trigger on your Honeywell Xenon 1900/1902 two or three times to temporarily put the scanner into either imaging mode, cell phone read mode, or centering mode. Here is where you’d use this feature.

Example 1:  If your application occasionally involves scanning digital barcodes.  Cell phone read mode can slow down your scanner a little when scanning non-digital barcodes. “Click, click” and you’ve temporarily turned on cell phone read mode to quickly read that digital barcode.

Example 2:  Or maybe you love the broad view of your Honeywell Xenon, but you have one barcode that you have to scan that’s bunched together with other barcodes that you don’t want to scan.  “Click, click” (activate centering mode) and you’ve temporarily narrowed your scanner’s field of view to hit that one barcode you need in the bunch.

Here is how it works.

1. Scan the barcode of the desired toggle mode:

2. Set the number of triggers required to activate the Trigger Toggle Mode:

If you’d prefer, you can then set the trigger timing (how fast you need to hit the trigger) if the default of 400ms doesn’t work for you.  See User’s Guide for Trigger Timing barcode and instructions. And you can set the Trigger Toggle Timeout (time period before reverting back to regular scan mode) if the default of five seconds doesn’t work for you.  See User’s Guide for details.

For assistance with setting this up, contact your Barcodes, Inc. Account Manager or reach out to our Professional Services Team.

How old is the battery in your mobile computer? Some can’t answer that question and in that lies the problem. The greater the age in batteries the greater the chance of the battery not functioning properly; that being said it makes sense to have an easy way to distinguish the age of your battery. Global Technology Systems (GTS) is introducing Battery Color Coding, this service will allow you to easily distinguish the aging of your battery population and quickly determine the warranty status of your batteries. More importantly it will also allow you to identify, replace, and recycle the old batteries swiftly and efficiently. Each year GTS will be making different color batteries along with the standard OEM color. For example in 2017 (year 1) GTS will be making blue batteries, in 2018 (year 2) GTS will be making green batteries, in 2019 (year 3) GTS will be making pink batteries and so on. The colored batteries will have no additional cost from the standard OEM color.

Battery Color Coding will give you the following benefits:

• Cut Labor Costs: Eliminates staff downtime and productivity loss caused by mid-shift battery failures.
• Cut Battery Costs: Stock only healthy batteries in the appropriate quantities.
• Cuts Service Agreement Costs: Many mobile device “failures” aren’t a device problem at all but a bad battery issue, allowing you to significantly reduce repair requests and help desk calls.

Cordless scanners provide a world of convenience with their ease of mobility. Unfortunately, one drawback of being untethered to computer is that it now becomes possible to misplace your scanner. Especially in applications with multiple cordless scanners, it is very easy to lose track of one during the hustle of the work day.

Honeywell has a great feature for all their devices that helps customers keep track of their wireless scanners. However, it is a feature that will not work out of the box. Using the programming guide that come with each scanner you can set the following step to enable an out-of-range alarm.

• Out-of-Range Alarm is set to “No Alarm” by default.  You have to turn it on by setting the time out duration to > 0.
• Both the base and the scanner sound off on the Xenon, but only the scanner for the Granit.
• Alarm duration is programmable (0-3,000 seconds).
• The alarm stops when the scanner is moved closer to the base, when the base connects to another scanner, or when the alarm duration expires.

Choosing the right printing method for labels can always be confusing at first. With options for direct thermal and thermal transfer it really comes down to how long you want the label to last and in what kind of environment. Thermal transfer provides more options for longevity and durability but not without a cost.

Thermal Transfer – Advantages

• Image durability. It’s the label type needed for harsh environments.
• Superb resolution of bar codes, text and graphics.
• Longer printhead life compared to direct thermal printers.
• Can be color depending on color of label – black, blue, red, green, white.

Thermal Transfer – Disadvantages

• Dual media needed – labels and ribbons. More to purchase and store.
• Ribbons can be tricky to load.
• Must match ribbon to facestock.
• Single pass ribbon can be wasteful if little is printed on long labels.

Businesses already know the move to a more mobile workforce is key to greater effectiveness and profitability. Enabling your employees with better tools lets them do more in less time and improves their general day-to-day experience.

From transportation and manufacturing to the retail front-end, many mobile applications require a means to print labels or receipts on the go. There are plenty of mobile printers on the market today but none match the performance and durability of the Zebra ZQ500.

ZQ500 printers are lightweight, yet engineered to handle the bumps, drops and collisions that are part of the job. The printers feature a patented military design that meets third-party-verified MIL-STD 810g military standards for shock, vibration and temperature exposure. The printers can withstand repeated drops to concrete from 6.6′ on multiple sides.

Designed for intuitive, simple use with a simplified user interface that reduces the amount of accidentally changed printer settings, and the large buttons increase accuracy for gloved hands and fingers the ZQ500 is made for the workplace.

• Apple iOS, Android, Windows Mobile and BlackBerry connectivity
• Direct thermal printing of barcodes, text and graphics at 203 dpi resolution (8 dots per mm)
• Print speed up to 5″/127 mm per second (with Draft mode enabled)
• CPCL and ZPL programming languages and XML support
• 400 MHz 32-bit ARM processor with 256 MB RAM (8 MB available for user applications)
• Cold Temperature Compensation mode–optimizes/balances print speeds to allow for better print performance at lower temps
• Dual-sided tear bar which allows for clean tearing in either direction (not available with linerless SKUs)
• Printer can be used in any orientation
• “Clamshell” design for easy media loading
• Management: Mirror, SNMP, Web server, ProfileManager, AirWatch and Wavelink Avalanche
• Bluetooth 4.0 Smart Ready Low Energy radio
• Simple easy-to-read LCD with large icons for battery and wireless status
• Tolerance of multiple drops from 6.6′ (2 m) to concrete
• Zebra Print Touch simplifies Bluetooth pairing and launches web-based help pages with Near Field Communication (NFC) enabled devices
• Power Smart Print Technology – anticipates upcoming printing to optimize battery consumption and print speed

Honeywell scanners provide some of the most extensive programming options from any manufacturer. Especially when using scanners for multiple purposes, it can be very convenient to keep these key scanner reset codes around.

• Factory Defaults:  The scanner’s settings that are done at the factory during manufacturing.
• Custom Defaults:  Any changes to the scanner’s setting that one makes permanent.  Making changed settings permanent will be the topic of a future Scanner Gram.  Once Custom Defaults are set up/saved – they become “Factory Defaults”.
• Data Formatting:  Program the scanner to edit, delete, append scanned data.

Defalt

Scanning this barcode sets your Honeywell scanner back to factory default including getting rid of any special Data Formatting you have your scanner doing.  If there are any saved Custom Defaults (See above Custom Defaults) scanning this barcode takes the scanner back to your saved Custom Defaults – not all the way to true Honeywell Factory Default.

Defovr

Scanning this barcode clears any Custom Defaults that have been saved to your scanner – but that’s all it does.  It does not send your scanner back to Honeywell Factory Default.  Note one VERY important item – DEFOVR will disable plugins (EasyDL, Easy BCBP, etc.) and you may need to reach out to tech support to re-enable them.

So if you are not sure what your scanner has been through, and you are sure the scanner has no plugins, and you want to get it back to true Factory Default – scan Defovr then Defalt.  That’s what I am going to be doing going forward when I get demo gear.

DFmca3

Dfmca3 is the command that clears any Data Formatting you’ve programmed your scanner to do. It does not clear any scanner settings or send your scanner back to Factory Default.

Star has announced a new series of peripherals for their comprehensive mPOP system. Star’s mPOP now supports an optional scale, 2D barcode scanner, customer display, and external cash drawer. With these added peripherals, retailers and restaurateurs can now transform their mPOP into a complete point of sale hub to accept more versatile transactions in higher volume.

Star has integrated support for three Detecto APS scales. The APS scales supported are offered for varied use cases. The APS10 (max. 15 kg) is ideal for candy shops, delis, frozen yogurt shops, etc., where the APS20 (max. 15 kg) is better for larger items like bags of fruit and vegetables at a farmer’s market or grocery store. The APS12 (max. 160 oz.) is best in similar environments as the APS10, or any other location than prefers to measure in ounces.

Star has integrated a 2D barcode scanner for the mPOP. Now, users have the option of choosing between the Star 1D scanner and the new 2D scanner. The 2D barcode reader will be beneficial to accept coupons in the form of QR code, or access item information. In addition to 2D barcode scanner support, Star has designed a two-line, blue backlit customer display with up to 20 characters per line. With this support, the retailer can not only show the customer their transaction price, but they can also add advertising messages for when the mPOP is not being used.

Lastly, Star added a cash drawer connection port (DK port) to the mPOP to support an extra cash drawer. This is ideal for users who need a point of sale system with a small footprint, but still have a higher cash flow, such as a bar or deli.

You’ve been hearing about the new Honeywell presentation scanner – the Orbit 7190g – a hybrid laser + imager scanner

How does it compare to the Honeywell Genesis 7580g (aka the Starbuck’s scanner)?

Here is how:

• If you are scanning mostly screens (digital coupons) and occasionally merchandise then you want the Honeywell Genesis 7580g.  Think of the Starbuck’s use case.
• If you are scanning mostly merchandise and occasionally screens then you want the new Honeywell Orbit 7190g hybrid.  Think Convenience Stores looking to start scanning digital coupons.

And if you are scanning just merchandise then you want the Honeywell Orbit 7120 (the laser only version). Don’t think of the Honeywell Orbit 7190g as a cheap alternative to the Honeywell Genesis.  It’s not.

Call one of our representatives for quote on your required presentation barcode scanner.

Regardless of the business size, everyone is looking to improve the efficiency and accuracy of their workforce. Mobile computing options have become more powerful and smaller allowing for wearable device solutions that make sense.

Wearable solutions provide a hands free experience for your workforce which has immediate efficiency results. From part picking and package handling to sortation and vehicle loading, any application that requires use of both hands is a great fit for a wearable device.

Historically, wearable solutions were bulky and required customization to software to deal with a stripped down interface. With Honeywell’s selection of wearable hardware this issue are part of the past.

Using the rugged enterprise class Dolphin 70e or Dolphin 75e mobile computer with purpose-built 8670 wireless ring scanner provides you with a new approach to enabling hands-free operations. The large display, flexible touchscreen keypads, and modern architecture allow you to easily deploy more user-friendly applications to quickly gain the productivity of hands-free operation.

The lightweight, wearable accessories provide increased comfort and improved hygiene over conventional wearables. And all components are breakaway for safety and easily swappable for left- or right-hand operation.