snarp: small cute androgynous android crossing arms and looking very serious (Default)
Snarp ([personal profile] snarp) wrote2011-10-02 05:42 pm

In which a smartphone is stupid.

My grandfather is very, very cautious about spending money. He presently needs to replace his cell phone. We just had this conversation.

Me: Here, Papaw, this is why you need a smartphone. I can take this Google thing and scan in barcodes -

Papaw: And it'll tell you about them?

Me: It's supposed to say how much they cost at other stores, so you don't pay too much. - I need something with a barcode. Okay, here, this lemonade mix.

*I scan the lemonade mix.*

Papaw: *laughs at it*

Google Shopper: *is helpfully displaying a "Decorative Skin Fits Guitar Hero 5 for PS2 PS3 Guitar."

Me: Okay, Papaw, never listen to anything I say. You don't need a smartphone.

-

I then tried it on cooking spray, tissues, an air freshener, a can of oatmeal, an old edition of The Grand Sophy, a Dresden Files book, and a gallon jug of white vinegar. It recognized the first three, then gave me a bunch of oatmeal-related products and a more recent romance novel, which I guess means that there are specific barcode ranges for oats and romance.

It recognized Harry Dresden, and even offered to sell me the ebook for $3 more than the paperback cost. The vinegar, though, it thought was a pastoral-themed wall hanging.

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