Yesterday I came across a printed advertisement containing a QR code. It was in a bathroom, so you can imagine what I was doing while staring at it. I was peeing. I’ve been in a similar situation before, and it let me thinking about the reasons of why QR might not be that popular.
I think that one reason is a translation issue. I mean changing from an abstract visual data/information to some data/information that a person can understand. When we observe QR codes, they basically mean or denote nothing. In that regard, why should a user need to carry out a set of steps to translate, discover what the QR code says? In that bathroom situation, why should I have to take my phone out, look for the appropriate app and scan the code? I can easily google the name of the restaurant by using the same device at that moment. It’d be faster! Those steps for translating the visual abstract data/information from the QR code into a form that a human can understand seem to be unnecessary.
Nonetheless, I do think that QR codes provide an interesting opportunity to design for user experience. Imagine this, as some cameras can detect faces and smiles, it’d be great that our smartphones can detect the QR code and do something with it. Automatize something. For instance, imagine that once you scan the QR code, your phone downloads an app and feeds it with your personal data stored in the phone. Consequently, a restaurant knows “your taste” and offers you a bottle of wine, free desert, or takes into account to guide you in your search for similar restaurants elsewhere.
We have the QR codes. They’re design is there. It’s restrictive. However, I little bit of imagination could bring us to exploit the use of QR codes better. They were invented for some reason. And people are still using them for some reason. An interesting UX design space seems to be there to explore and re-think the purpose and UX with QR codes, including how to make that translation issue seamless or better, get rid of it.
Cheers!
Update
Thanks to @gregnorc I just learned that QR might be more popular than I thought. Want to know more? Read “QRishing: The Susceptibility of Smartphone Users to
QR Code Phishing Attacks”