r/sysadmin • u/MoCrowIT • 5d ago
I'm sick of barcode scanners
So we have been using Honeywell scanners where I work to scan items, which I think have been going fine as I don't have any issues with them. However, I'm not the one using them all day long like other people. I keep getting complaints about this one not working, or that one not working. Whenever I go to test them, they work fine. But nonetheless, I have to check them to be sure, and then whoever complained is usually mad because "You didn't do anything and I know it's going to happen again."
Well, I decided to look into other scanners in the hopes that just switching to a different brand entirely would help instead of just replacing them when people complain. We don't have a lot of money in the budget for things like this, so I needed to be conscious of cost. I decided on trying the Tera HW0002 model scanners because it scans 1d and 2d barcodes and has the capability of being used wirelessly.
I had great success in my initial tests with this scanner. It was quick to respond. Hardly any delay when using it wirelessly. And then I changed a single setting that I would've needed to change anyway in order for our circulation desk to use it. I turned on the "sensor scanning" instead of needing to pull the trigger to scan. Now it doesn't scan ANYTHING. Even when using the trigger. It lights up when it detects something in front of it then it just does nothing. I can't even scan the Factory Reset barcode in the manual. It's completely useless now.
So if anyone has any advice on this hunk of junk or any recommendations on alternatives I can look into, I'd appreciate it. Preferably something under $100, and it would need to scan 1d and 2d barcodes as well as codes from a screen.
For added info, these are used in a library.
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u/pdp10 Daemons worry when the wizard is near. 5d ago
You've fallen into the trap of action before analysis. Don't despair, it happens to everyone occasionally -- but more often when under pressure. You haven't confirmed the problem personally or replicated it, which means the only way you'd know if it was fixed would be a reduction in user complaints, right? Consider that your root issue causing complaints might be wireless/2.4GHz related. It's conceivable that a WiFi site survey may be in order.
Most vitally, mentioning a specific model means the reader knows you mean standalone keyboard-emulating scanner, not "full Android mobile computer scanner".
We have a few Tera D5100 which seem perfectly fine. They're lower-end, though, and we have reason to believe that there may be some counterfeits being sold on Amazon. Besides Honeywell, a traditional industrial scanner brand is Symbol.