My iphone 15 won't scan QR codes

Not helpful. It’s blurry. Doesn’t work for anything. It’s a new and expensive phone. This bites

It's not dismissive, it's how being a software developer works.

The third-party developer is completely responsible for making sure their application works with future versions of iOS and future Apple hardware.

These changes were introduced at WWDC in 2021.

Also:

Scanning data with the camera | Apple Developer Documentation

That's more than enough time for them to have made their products compatible with newer versions of iOS and the iPhone 14 Pro/Pro Max and 15 Pro/Pro Max.

I explain this in more detail in this post:

My iphone 15 won't scan QR codes - Apple Community

I have the very same issue and it’s gone on for FAR TOO LONG. It is extremely frustrating to always have to find ways to work around this defect. This is a blemish on Apple’s reputation. Remember the old Apple slogan? “It just works.” Well, not so much anymore.

By default an app doesn't choose a camera mode, but it can do so if it so chooses.

Most of the time the 1x camera works perfectly and apps are designed to use it.

You talk about making sense and then throw "four feet" out there which is a perfectly ridiculous number; the minimum focus distance for the 15 Pro Max is roughly eight inches.

Even if you do stand four feet away and the QR code is the size of a "postage stamp," it will scan perfectly.

If you're really curious about what app developers need to do, Apple detailed it nicely in this presentation in 2021 which covers the "minimum focus distance" property introduced in iOS 15:

"Here's a sample app called AVCamBarcode. It showcases our AVFoundation barcode detection APIs. The UI guides the user to position an object inside of a rectangle for scanning. In this example, I've chosen a fairly small QR code on a piece of paper. The barcode is only 20 millimeters wide. By tapping on the Metadata button, I see a list of all the various object types supported by AVCaptureMetadataOutput. There are a lot of them. I'll choose QRCodes and then position my iPhone 12 Pro Max camera to fill the rectangle with the QRCode. Unfortunately, it's so small that I have to get very close to the page to fill the preview. That's closer than the camera's minimum focus distance. The code is blurry, so it doesn't scan.

To guide the user to back away, I need to apply a zoom factor to the camera preview... like so. Seeing a zoomed image on the screen will prompt them to physically move the camera farther away from the paper. I can do that with a slider button, but it would be much better if the app took care of the zoom automatically.

That's where the new minimumFocusDistance property of AVCaptureDevice comes in. It's new in iOS 15. Given the camera's horizontal field of view, the minimum barcode size you'd like to scan -- here I've set it to 20 millimeters -- and the width of the camera preview window as a percentage, we can do a little math to calculate the minimum subject distance needed to fill that preview width. Then, using the new minimumFocusDistance property of the camera, we can detect when our camera can't focus that close and calculate a zoom factor large enough to guide the user to back away. And finally, we apply it to the camera by locking it for configuration, setting the zoom factor, and then unlocking it. After recompiling our demo app, the UI now automatically applies the correct zoom amount."

What’s new in camera capture - WWDC21 - Videos - Apple Developer

so even if an app worked with say an iPhone 6, app developers need to keep up or their apps will break and become irrelevant. Ironically, after almost three years few app developers have incorporated the recommended API the talk above covers.

The list of apps that do scan codes properly is lengthy but includes those from Amazon, Scandit and Walmart to name but three.

I have tried holding the iphone very close to the screen and at progressive distances to 2 or 3 feet away. nothing works for me.

this video from a popular you tube creator has the Exact issue. It is his number one long term issue with iPhone 15 Pro…

Photos of up close items like barcodes etc are terrible for the new iphone 15s. I take up close photos of tech items for work and this is the WORST iphone camera I have had since

iphone 6!

Read the comments on this video. This issue is the software and the phone it is NOT the user and HOW your are using it. Remember it “just works”

https://youtu.be/s2vlKvmf3pU?feature=shared

The phone does not "choose the mode," the app does.

Every single QR reading app I've tried reads codes instantly.

I've stated before, do not try to fill the area indicated by an app with the code, but instead, back the camera away from the code until the code is in focus and it will be read immediately.

For example I made purchases at a Walmart store and gas station using Walmart Pay, which relies upon on-screen QR codes. In both cases the app read the code within less than ½ second of pointing the iPhone 15 Pro Max at the code.

You said they do not focus on the code until you move away… that's not a problem, they can read the code as soon as it is in focus.

If you start with it in focus, the process is instantaneous.

The issue seems to be that for close up needed to scan the QR code the Pro uses the macro lens but the software tries to use the standard lens which won’t focus close enough. This ought to be ann easy fix so not sure why it hasn’t been done.

It is up to application developers to keep up to date with Apple's products and to update their apps accordingly, for example:

Scanning data with the camera | Apple Developer Documentation

That, in part, is what WWDC is all about each year.

Again, you seem to think camera selection is required for code scanning to work when in fact it works perfectly with just the normal lens.

However, as an application developer, you may choose to provide an alternate interface.

For example, the excellent Scandit app uses only the normal lens.

I have a iphone 14 pro. The problem is on the older iphones (pre-iphone 14) it can auto switch to macro mode when using qr scanner. I proved this when i was in the apple store and the assistant showed his. I thought the problem was my camera. so they replaced the lens. Didnt fix it, so replaced my phone. Didnt fix it, so reset the phone and used with a fresh install (no backup) - didnt fix it.

They need to update the s/ware for it to allow macro mode when using the QR scanner. Thats it.... just like the older phones do.

It's not a bug with camera focus, you are trying to focus on a QR code located too close to the camera lens to be focused on.

You do not need to fill any box depicted on-screen with a bar or QR code, as long as it's visible and the image is in focus, the software can recognize it.

For best results, hold your phone at least 6" or so from the code you are trying to scan (for an iPhone 13); for an iPhone 14 or 15, keep the device 8" away from the code.

This works like a charm -- was having issues with scanning using my Sam's club app -- backed it up with my 15 Pro and poof, it scans, red line, autofocus and quick. While 6-8" is what works, when one is shopping, the natural inclination is to hold an item in-hand, up close and scan.

Thanks for the tip/guidance.

If their app couldn't scan something, it's either user error or the fault of the app.

The iPhone 15 models can all scan bar codes and QR codes, every time.

I just went grocery shopping last night and my grocery store has digital coupon QR codes on many items, and my iPhone had issues with none of them.

Likewise, Walmart Pay, which scans a QR code that appears on the register, also works perfectly.

A good way to test whether it's the app or not is to download the free Scandit app, which can scan multiple codes in multiple formats, and is free:

https://apps.apple.com/us/app/scandit-barcode-scanner/id453880584

Your iPhone 11 did not "take better pictures" though they may have been better for your particular uses.

If you read any independent review of the iPhone 15's cameras, you'll see the performance is leaps and bounds beyond what previous phones could accomplish.

If you're talking about computational photography and the processing Apple does, all premium smart phones work that way now due to customer demand; if you don't want processing applied, they provide the ability to shoot in RAW mode using third-party apps like Halide and Lightroom, though you then need to process the RAW files yourself.

If you have specific complaints, let Apple know at the link below; we're all just Apple users here and cannot change anything.

Feedback - iPhone - Apple

Contact that app maker and get them to fix their app as it's poorly designed.

Other apps seem to be able to do ID verification using normal photos and scans of the rear of the ID with no issues.

It is the responsibility of the app vendor to keep track of new interfaces and to keep up with new hardware.

The mechanism to resolve these issues was released to developers in 2021.

What’s new in camera capture - WWDC21 - Videos - Apple Developer