Business Card Reader ($5.99)
Version – 1.1
REVIEW – “Move over Rolodex!”
With all of the technology we have in this day and age it is amazing to me how many people still keep their contacts in a rolodex. Maybe it’s the comfort of knowing you have a physical copy of everything, or an attachment to business cards, but whatever the reason, most people have not gone totally digital with 
their contacts. Well if you have been waiting for a simple digital solution for contacts look no further than “Business Card Reader” by SHAPE Services!
One of the first things I noticed about this app is how it feels very much like just keeping business cards in your phone. The interface is done in such a way as to feel familiar to someone that has kept business cards in some sort of portfolio or wallet before. The main menu is a sharp looking “leather” object with four little “cards” in it which are the menu options. From here you can add new cards from an old picture, take a picture of a card, look at your previously added cards or get general informal “About” the app.
As smooth as the interface of this app is, it’s worthless if it doesn’t work right? Well I’m happy to report that while this app looks amazing, it’s performance exceeds any expectations that I had for it. “Scanning” in new cards is not only quick and painless, but the information that this app is able to read off of them is nothing short of spectacular!
As you would expect the text recognition and filtering software are not perfect. With that said as long as the cards were fairly plain and on light colors this app was able 
to read them almost flawlessly! What’s even better is the fact that this app will store all of the pictures of your cards so you can view them whenever you want without just cluttering up your “Camera Roll.” If you want them in your camera roll there is an option to send them there though.
While this app is an amazing resource, and it does what it sets out to do very well I do have a couple gripes/suggestions. The first one is that there should be either a way to search through your cards by typing the person or business’s name. While I do not have 100-200 cards to keep track of, someone that did would have a very hard time finding a particular card 
without a search feature. My second suggestion is that it would be awesome to have some kind of desktop sync. It’s great to be able to scan all of your business cards into your phone and view them anytime, but it would be even better if you could download them once to your phone and then access them on any computer anywhere!
That being said, there are not really any other apps in the App Store right now that can do what this one can. If you are one of those people that is constantly receiving and handing out business cards, I would highly recommend this app to you because it will save you a LOT of time! Even if you don’t receive that many cards though, this app is so easy to use that I would recommend it to almost anyone. And at just $5.99 I don’t think you will find a better value anywhere. So what are you waiting for? Check it out today!
- David H.
Developer – SHAPE services GmbH
URL: http://www.shapeservices.com/en/products/details.php?product=bcr
DEVELOPERS NOTES
#1 Business App in US App Store in one day after release.
Instant business cards recognition right on the iPhone!
It works on iPhone 3GS. For older iPhone models macro lens attachment is necessary!
Import contact information right from business card to your iPhone contacts, just take a photo of the business card and New Contact is added!
Business Card Reader takes photo, then “reads” it using text recognition technology made by ABBYY and enters complete and accurate contact info into appropriate fields of the iPhone address book.
There is no need in boring manual retyping of all names, phone numbers, emails etc. from business cards anymore!
Recognizes English, French, Italian, German and Spanish business cards.
Added Value: In a built-in browser it is possible to make automated LinkedIn search of a scanned contact and read LinkedIn profile without leaving the Business Card Reader app.
Embedded browser uses the same filtering as Safari: if Safari is disabled this app will also turn off the browser.
Business Card Reader is a great value and excellent tool for business professionals, exhibitors at trade shows, exhibitions attendees and sales personnel.
HOW TO GET GOOD RECOGNITION RESULTS
1. Put business card on a flat surface.
2. Good lighting is a key factor: at least a bright desk lamp or direct sunlight on a sunny day is necessary.
3. On iPhone 3GS make sure the camera is focused on the business card. On older models you should use 3rd party additional lenses to get good results.
4. Hold the iPhone right above the card. Keep the card aligned with viewfinder edges and adjust iPhone positioning so that the card fits the screen size.
5. Hold the iPhone firmly and take the picture.
6. After recognition is done, it’s a good idea to check the result, since no OCR software yet can guarantee 100% result.
In next version we will add business card holder to save the original photos of business cards along with the contact details.
COMPATIBILITY NOTES
- No special equipment is required for using the app on iPhone 3GS since its camera allows to take photo of good enough quality.
- If you are using iPhone 2G or 3G, you may need additional gadgets to improve photo quality, such as Griffin Clarifi.
- Since iPod Touch doesn’t have built-in camera, it’s possible to recognize business cards only from saved images.
ABOUT SHAPE SERVICES
SHAPE Services is a leading mobile software development company. Since 2002 IM+ and other SHAPE’s apps have been topsellers in different e-shops and app stores worldwide on all major mobile platforms and phone models. Visit www.shapeservices.com for more details.
See other apps: IM+, IM+ for Skype, VR+, RDM+, Mobiscope and GPSed.
Download Now!
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© 2009, Davidh. All rights reserved.