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Until recently I would've more or less agreed, they didn't seem to add much. COVID has suddenly made them a big deal here in Spain though. QR codes are everywh

Until recently I would've more or less agreed, they didn't seem to add much. COVID has suddenly made them a big deal here in Spain though. QR codes are everywhere now. Restaurants and bars aren't supposed to pass menus around for hygiene reasons, so those are now all QR codes on every table. Gyms and swimming pools etc now must require reservations for entry to control numbers, so those are all managed with emailed QR codes you scan at the door. You need a completed health form to enter the country, and you have to prove it at the border by scanning a QR code from the form. They've gone right the way from niche gimmick to day-to-day necessity at incredible speed. En route this has improved lots of things too - e.g. quite a few bars & fast food restaurants let you order and pay directly from the menu behind their QR code, and there's far fewer annoying paper forms anywhere. I don't see them going away.

k__ 6y ago
Interesting. In Germany everything was either closed or the employees simply desinfected stuff after use.
- cyxxon 6y ago
  I was in exactly one restaurant indoors during Covid in Germany, and they used lamitated QR codes on the table for an online menu, so it was in use here as well. But generally I agree, yes.
ultrafez 6y ago
On the whole, I agree that the adoption of QR codes more widely is a good thing - they are a useful tool to solve a certain class of problems, but in pre-COVID times, they often weren't practical as only a small proportion of people would know how to use one, making it not a viable option to solve the problem. However, one downside of mobile phone ordering is that it has made the ordering process significantly less streamlined. Some restaurants/bars require you to install an app, some are fully web-based (good) but require you to register, but only some of them are web-based, don't ask for more information than is required, and integrate well with fast/easy payment systems (such as Google Pay or Apple Pay).

k__ 6y ago

Interesting. In Germany everything was either closed or the employees simply desinfected stuff after use.

cyxxon 6y ago
I was in exactly one restaurant indoors during Covid in Germany, and they used lamitated QR codes on the table for an online menu, so it was in use here as well. But generally I agree, yes.

ultrafez 6y ago

On the whole, I agree that the adoption of QR codes more widely is a good thing - they are a useful tool to solve a certain class of problems, but in pre-COVID times, they often weren't practical as only a small proportion of people would know how to use one, making it not a viable option to solve the problem. However, one downside of mobile phone ordering is that it has made the ordering process significantly less streamlined. Some restaurants/bars require you to install an app, some are fully web-based (good) but require you to register, but only some of them are web-based, don't ask for more information than is required, and integrate well with fast/easy payment systems (such as Google Pay or Apple Pay).