In Barcoding Inc.’s most recent newsletter, Eye on ROI, we featured the LXE/Honeywell Marathon field computer. If you missed it, view the product in our “Speeds and Feeds” section and sign up to receive future newsletters.

The LXE/Honeywell Marathon computer features:

• Keyboard, barcode, magnetic card and touch screen data entry
• Intel Atom Z530 (1.6GHz) processor
• 7.1″ WVGA (800×480) display
• Backlight keyboard
• Enhanced security options
• 802.11 a/b/g/n
• High resolution color camera

Watch the video and get the product brochure here, or learn more about LXE/Honeywell and their products.

Mobility in the retail industry is changing everything from the way consumers shop, to purchasing habits, to checkout and the way we pay.

According to a National Retail Federation (NRF) survey conducted by BIGresearch, a record 226 million shoppers visited stores and websites over Black Friday weekend, up 14 million from last year.

But, of the online shoppers, which ones were e-commerce, and which ones were m-commerce. Short for mobile commerce, m-commerce is taking retail by storm—and it’s no surprise. As consumers continue to do more with their phones, they want to be able to shop on their phones. And consumers aren’t just making purchases from their mobile devices—they are also using their smartphones while in the store, looking up prices and comparing products.

An article from Internet Retailer states, “Mobile commerce is different than e-commerce in that it is tying the e-commerce and bricks-and-mortar channels together. Customers are standing in stores looking up product information and prices and reviews, and that is having an impact on sales online and in stores.” In order to keep sales up, retailers need to cater to the consumer, not only creating mobile websites, but also mobile apps and QR code campaigns.

And consumers aren’t the only ones turning to their mobile devices. In our last look at the retail industry, we explored the possibilities of using Apple iPhones, iPod touches and iPads as point of sale systems, a growing trend among retailers. Many retailers operate at a loss all year, depending on 4th quarter holiday sales to drive business. However, in order to cater to consumer demands and increase sales during busy holiday times, traditional POS systems are becoming outdated, bulky and expensive to scale. With a cloud-based POS system, such as those offered with the Apple products, retailers gain the ability and agility to quickly meet demands. Since these solutions are portable, manpower is no longer tied up at the register and can be used as necessary to keep lines moving, help customers and ultimately, keep sales up.

Mobility has brought exciting changes for both retailers and consumers. But, what else is in store for the future of retail? Share your thoughts by commenting below, or on our Facebook or twitter pages.

RFID is being used in conjunction with the iPhone to create BiKN, the app that helps you keep track of people and things.

When you can’t find your phone, you simply ask someone to call it, but when you can’t find your wallet or keys, you’ve got bigger problems—until now. Treehouse Labs, is releasing a wireless technology solution that allows an iPhone to locate items or individuals. The solution is BiKN, pronounced beacon, and uses an iPhone application, an RFID reader built into a case that snaps onto the phone and battery-powered 2.4 GHz RFID tags that can be attached to objects or people. BiKN users can set up their phone to send alerts to help them locate whatever they like.

The BiKN solution will be formally launched in Jan. at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES). Once available, consumers will be able to purchase a package, consisting of the BiKN “smart case,” which would come with eight tags. After an iPhone is placed into the case, the phone would prompt the consumer to download the BiKN app. From there, they could set up a network of everything linked to the case by inputting information about what was tagged, then reading each tag through the case. The app can even display pictures, helping to keep track of alerts.

In addition to tracking people and things, they BiKn system could also be used as a sort of leash—users can set up a perimeter around the phone and indicate how far items or people can move away from it. For example, if a child or pet wore one of the RFID tags and went too far away, the phone and tag would sound an alert.

BiKN plans on making their solution affordable for consumers, reflecting Apple by creating fun and accessible technology. In the future, BiKN may be available for other operating systems such as Android, but for now, is focusing on launching the iPhone solution at CES.

Would you use BiKN to track your things? What about people? Share your thoughts by commenting below, or on our Facebook or twitter pages.

As mobility continues to be on the forefront of the minds of both businesses and consumers, we have to wonder—how much is too much, and how is this affecting our privacy?

In Australia, a mobile tracking solution from Path Intelligence, a company that brings online analytics to the real world, will be rolled out at a shopping mall. While consumer information such as names and phone numbers will not be released, location will be. Essentially, shoppers will be tracked via their cell throughout the mall. This, combined with security cameras and POS systems could be a game-changer in retail—what if someone knew how much you were spending, where you spent it, and where you were headed next?

However, this is sort of technology is illegal in America, but there are some gray areas and the reasonable expectation of privacy could be reevaluated. Imagine having your trusty mobile device turned into a GPS tracker for the mall, or some other corporation. What if your employer could use this sort of technology? While Path Intelligence does not disclose how their technology works, its presumable that they install devices similar to a cell tower on the premise, which would transmit a signal to nearby cell phones and receive a signal back from that phone in order to determine location.

While this is still illegal in the U.S., it could potentially threaten consumer privacy, while being a retail and mobile marketer’s dream. How do you feel about the idea of being tracked? Has mobile technology gone too far, or is this the natural progression… or have we been tracked all along? Share your thoughts by commenting below, or on our Facebook or twitter pages.

Smartphones have caused consumer purchasing behavior to change. Find out how to protect your brand in the mobile age.

The GS1 recently conducted a report in conjunction with Capgemini that explains how the smartphone is playing a critical role in consumer purchasing behavior, and what companies can do to help influence consumer behavior.

According to the report, “Beyond the Label: Providing Digital Information Consumers Can Trust,” increased smartphone usage has lead to an increase in demand from consumers for more information, which in turn, has lead to an explosion of data from a wide variety of sources.

In fact, over two-thirds of consumers want nutrition and ingredient information and over 30 percent of smartphone users have downloaded a barcode scanning app. However, depending on where their searches take them, consumers are becoming more and more frustrated with incorrect product information.

In some cases, 91 percent of mobile barcode scans returned incorrect product information, so it’s no wonder consumers are getting frustrated. What’s more, is that 38 percent of consumers will not purchase a product if they don’t trust the information they get on a smartphone, and 35 percent might stop using an app if it lead them to the wrong information.

So, what can brands do to prevent this? In some cases, such as third-party or “crowd-sourced” sites, brand managers have little control over the information posted. However, managing your brand should focus on data integrity and collaboration with other companies and sources to ensure an enhanced consumer researching experience. Learn more on how to protect your brand in the mobile age.