Comparison

Barcode Scanners vs BotBook

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Barcode Scanners

This app offers robust barcode scanning capabilities, supporting over 30 different types including QR, UPC, and Data Matrix. It provides powerful parsing for industry-standard formats like driver's licenses and GS1 codes, simplifying data extraction.

Highlights
  • Scan over 30 barcode types
  • QR code scanning
  • UPC scanning
  • Data Matrix scanning
  • GS1 code parsing
  • Driver's license data parsing
Features
Read full description

Barcode scanning made simple! Use this powerful app to easily scan over 30 different types of barcodes, including QR, UPC, GS1, Data Matrix, PDF417, DotCode, and many others. The Cognex Barcode Scanners application reads all major barcode symbologies, including Aztec Code, Codabar, Code 11, Code 25 (Interleaved, Industrial, COOP, Matrix and ITF-14), Code 39, Code 93, Code 128, Data Matrix, DotCode, EAN, ISBN, GS1 DataBar, MaxiCode, MSI Plessey, PDF417, Micro PDF417, Postal Codes, QR Code (Micro and Standard), TELEPEN and UPC barcode types, as well as GS1 sub-types like GS1 QR Code, GS1 Data Matrix and GS1-128. The app also provides powerful parsers to examine industry standard formatted barcodes more easily such as AAMVA (US and Canadian Driver’s Licenses), GS1, IUID, Structured Carrier Messages (MaxiCode), and more! To learn more about Cognex's high-speed barcode scanning and computer vision solutions, visit https://www.cognex.com.

About

BotBook

Features
Read full description

BotBook is a journaling app for adult teams that want a verifiable record of who did what and when: college clubs, hobbyist groups, professional collaborations, robotics teams. Capture moments as they happen with text, photos, voice notes, and live transcription, and BotBook stamps each entry with the server-side time so the record holds up under review. KEY FEATURES • Photos, audio, and text in one entry. Take a quick photo of the work, hold the mic to dictate, and the transcript is right there alongside the audio file. • Server-side timestamps. The entry's "when" is set by BotBook's servers in UTC, not your phone, so the timeline can't be back-dated. • 24-hour edit window. Authors can fix typos and re-attach media for a day; after that, entries lock and anyone can comment but not rewrite. • Team roles. Team admins, mentors, journalees, and parents each see a view scoped to what they should be able to do. Admins can promote, demote, or remove members and invite new people via Gmail. • Live transcription. iOS Speech framework runs on-device by default; voice notes upload alongside the transcript. • Audit log. Every create / edit / delete / member change writes an append-only audit row with IP, device, and timestamp, so the team can prove provenance long after the fact. • Built for both phone and iPad. NavigationSplitView sidebar on iPad, hamburger on iPhone, identical features.

Screenshots

Barcode Scanners4 screens
BotBook4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: BotBook at every 3 weeks against Barcode Scanners's every 5 months. Barcode Scanners's advantage is iOS requirement (9.0 vs 17.0). On price, ads, in-app purchases and device support there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Barcode Scanners ships an update every 5 months, BotBook every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 12, 2026 and September 27, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 8 level
Barcode Scanners versus BotBook: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterBarcode ScannersBotBook
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.6 (810 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews87.8% of reviews—
Number of ratings810 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 5 monthsEvery 3 weeks — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS9.0 — better17.0
Further details — not scored
Size35 MB10 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperCognex CorporationPrashanth Goriparthi

Bugs and requests

Barcode Scanners

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • App crashing after iOS 12.3.1 update
  • Unable to scan certain barcode types (e.g. GS1 DataMatrix)
  • Frozen camera view after initial scan

Requested features

4 requests
  • Option to disable tips/tooltips on startup
  • Batch export/logging of scan history
  • Ability to display non-readable characters
  • Deeper Shortcuts integration

BotBook

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

Barcode Scanners

No in-app purchases

None

BotBook

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Barcode Scanners free?
Barcode Scanners is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is BotBook free?
BotBook is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do Barcode Scanners or BotBook have ads?
Neither Barcode Scanners nor BotBook shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Barcode Scanners or BotBook?
Barcode Scanners ships an update every 5 months, and BotBook every 3 weeks. Most recently, Barcode Scanners was updated on October 12, 2026 and BotBook on September 27, 2026.

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