When camera phones first hit the shelves in the late 90’s they became an instant hit. The idea of combining a cell phone and a camera seemed almost unreal to so many people. Since then, these compact cameras have become extremely high tech and have been used to capture pictures and videos of events from all over the world. Now in the year 2011, these cameras will be able to do much more than simply snap pictures.

Smartphone cameras have tons of uses. They can be used to edit pictures, video chat with friends and family and scan barcodes to find prices. Similar to scanning bar codes, smartphone cameras are now being used to scan QR codes which might in this year’s yearbook.

QR codes or quick response codes are square boxes that have a specially designed code in them that can be scanned with a smartphone app. They were first invented in 1994 as a way to track automobiles while they were being built. Now almost 20 years later, they are being used as advertising tools.

If you have been to the mall recently, you might have noticed one of the square black and white coded boxes on a billboard. By scanning the code with your smartphone, you will instantly be linked to a website corresponding with what is being advertised on the billboard.

If you have not encountered a QR code yet, you probably will by the end of the school year. That is because they will most likely be included in the 2012 yearbook. QR codes can be used for much more than linking you to an advertisement. In the yearbook’s case, the plan is for them to link you to videos that obviously cannot be displayed on a page. Imagine looking through your yearbook 25 years from now, scanning a QR code and being linked to a video of a school concert or a team winning a big game. QR codes can also be used to link you to leftover pictures that were not used in the yearbook.

The possibilities with QR codes are endless and who knows how they will be used in the future. Within the past few days I have seen QR codes on ketchup bottles and on envelopes in the mail. One thing that is certain is that QR codes will only increase in popularity due to the fact that they are a convenient advertising tool.