Skip to main content

There is still use for QR codes yet: Chrome for iOS gains a QR scanner

Remember the last time you scanned a QR code? Us neither. The square-shaped sequences of black dots and squares, created in 1994 by the Japanese automotive industry, seemed to be just about everywhere a few short years ago. But the absence of preloaded QR code readers on popular smartphones and the inconvenience of scanning the little buggers contributed to their widespread decline. That didn’t stop Google from updating its Chrome browser on iOS with a QR code reader, though.

Pulling it up is as easy as pie. If you happen to have an Apple device that supports 3D Touch, the haptic feedback feature introduced in the iPhone 6S, you can access the “Scan QR Code” option from Chrome’s quick access menu. If you’re stuck with legacy hardware, on the other hand, you can access the feature from iOS’s Spotlight search. Type in “QR Code” or “Scan QR Code” to get it to appear in the list of results.

Recommended Videos

Chrome’s scanner isn’t limited to QR codes. It can scan barcodes, too — doing so takes you to a Google search page with details about the item in question.

Other minor Chrome improvements include a redesigned tab switcher on iPad devices that “[makes] it easier to access your open sites,” and quick links to voice search and Chrome’s privacy-conscious Incognito mode.

Recent advancements in artificial intelligence and computer vision — the science of automatically extracting, analyzing, and understanding the content of a single picture — have fostered the development of QR code alternatives. Google’s deprecated app could identify labels, landmarks, and printed text. Similarly, Amazon’s Flow app can recognize tens of millions of products, including books, DVDs, business cards, and packaged household items like a box of cereal or a box of tissues.

QR codes aren’t exactly dead and buried, to be fair. They have gained second wind from social media apps like Snapchat, Facebook Messenger, and Kik. Snapchat’s Snapcodes let you add another person on Snapchat without having to type in their username, and allows users to link website addresses to custom codes. Facebook Messenger Codes work much the same way. And Kik Codes let fellow Kik customers connect with one another, add new participants to a group conversation, or even trigger actions like purchasing a soda or printing a photo.

That is not to suggest Chrome for iOS’s newfound scanner will hasten the return of QR codes, but you might get more use out of it than you think.

Google Chrome is a free download in the App Store.

Kyle Wiggers
Kyle Wiggers is a writer, Web designer, and podcaster with an acute interest in all things tech. When not reviewing gadgets…
5 rumored iOS 26 features we could see at WWDC 2025
An iPhone 16 laying on a shelf with its screen on.

Apple’s upcoming WWDC 2025 showcase is going to be a busy one, even though the expected AI-powered software rebirth may not land until next year. In the meantime, reliable sources have spilled the beans on what we might expect for the next major iOS overhaul. 

Starting with the name, Apple could skip iOS 19 and could go straight from v18 to v26. We are also expecting a design overhaul, something that could draw inspiration from Vision OS. On the functional side, an AI health coach would be a huge draw for fitness enthusiasts. 

Read more
iOS 19 isn’t coming this fall … because Apple is calling it something else
The back of the Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max.

Apple will unveil the latest version of the iPhone operating system at WWDC next month, but apparently it won’t be “iOS 19.”

The tech giant is going to shake up the naming system for iOS, with the next version set to be called iOS 26, according to a Bloomberg report by prominent Apple tipster Mark Gurman on Wednesday.

Read more
5 lost iOS features I want to see return in iOS 19
Siri being shown on an iPhone 15 Pro on iOS 18.

In the second week of June, Apple will likely give the world a glimpse of its jazzed-up operating systems at WWDC 2025, and a major redesign is expected for iOS 19. Though I’ve always yearned for a return to the skeuomorphism look, we are hearing that Apple is eying a unified aesthetic language that is more reminiscent of Vision OS running on its uber-expensive headset.

A lot of eyes and ears will hunt for AI-related announcements, especially in the wake of Apple Intelligence flubs and delays. On the more practical side of things, an AI fitness coach might land this year with the iOS 19 update. But after going through all the hype and rumors, I hope Apple brings back the following features that it abandoned years ago, but with a modern makeover: 

Read more