Business Insights
Inventory Management Software With a Barcode Scanner
A guide for operators who searched for a barcode scanner and want to know which problem it is supposed to solve first.
10 min read
Inventory App for iPhone, iPad and Android
Inventory app for the work that happens away from a desk. Take the order at a customer’s counter, count the shelf where the shelf is, and pick with the phone camera as your scanner, all against the same account and stock as the web app.
Stocktake · Main warehouse
Counting on a phone
| Item | On hand | Counted |
|---|---|---|
| Olive oil | 218 | 218 |
| Sea salt | 60 | 54 |
| Glass jars | 40 |
Where the stock is, not where the computer is
Everything the app does, it does against the live account. There is no separate mobile copy of your data to reconcile afterwards, and nothing is written on paper to be typed in later.
01Order
Take the order at the customer’s counter
Create and edit sales orders in front of the customer, with their price list and their currency already applied. Scan a barcode to add a product to the order. It is in the system before you have packed the stand, rather than on a pad you transcribe on Monday, and the office sees it in the same list as every other order.
- Create and edit sales orders
- The customer’s price list and currency applied
- Scan a barcode to add a product
- Look up a price in front of the customer
Sale order · SO-2318
Harbour Deli
| Item | Qty | Price | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Olive oil | 48 | £8.50 | £408.00 |
| Sea salt | 36 | £4.00 | £144.00 |
| Glass jars | 20 | £15.00 | £300.00 |
Priced from Harbour Deli’s price list
02Count
Count the shelf at the shelf
Create adjustments and run a stocktake by scanning your way along the racking. What you count is what gets recorded, with a reason and your name on it, and nobody retypes a tally sheet. The count stays a draft until someone with the right to do so authorizes it, and only then does stock change.
- The phone camera reads the barcode
- A reason on every adjustment
- Stock changes only when it is authorized
- Counting and authorizing are separate permissions
Stocktake · Main warehouse
Sea salt
On hand
60
Counted
54
Variance
−6
Stock changes when it is authorized
03Pick
Pick and pack with the phone in your hand
Work through the day’s shipments on the phone: pick the lines, pack them and dispatch. Scanning as you pick is what catches the wrong variant before it goes in the box rather than after it reaches the customer, and what went out is written to the same order the office is looking at.
- The day’s shipments on the phone
- Pick, pack and dispatch
- Scan each line as it is picked
- The same order the office sees
Shipment 1 · SO-2318
Harbour Deli
| Item | To pick | Picked |
|---|---|---|
| Olive oil | 48 | 48 |
| Sea salt | 24 | 24 |
| Glass jars | 20 | 12 |
8 × Glass jars still to scan
Everything else the app needs
iPhone, iPad and Android
iOS 14 or later and Android 8 or later, from the App Store or Google Play.
Prices in front of a customer
The catalogue with the price list that applies to the customer you are standing with.
Same login, same permissions
Each person signs in with their own Qoblex account, and their permissions decide what they can do.
Counters who cannot authorize
Let someone count stock without giving them the power to change it.
One switch for the company
Turn on Mobile Access once under Integrations, and the whole team can download the app.
When the web app is enough
If everyone works at a desk, or carries a laptop or tablet to the shelf, the web app does the job. The app earns its place when the work happens standing up, with one hand free.
| Feature | Web app | Mobile app |
|---|---|---|
| Same account and stock | Yes | Yes |
| Take an order away from a desk | On a tablet | Yes |
| Count stock by scanning | With a handheld scanner | With the camera |
| Pick and pack | Yes | Yes |
| Look up a customer’s price | On a tablet | Yes |
| Settings, integrations and setup | Yes | Not every screen |
This app is one of the best investments ever! Our inventory problems have been solved. 90% of our products are bundles/composites and Qoblex works perfectly with these types of products. Support is awesome!
Integration ecosystem
Connect your stack
Native integrations and open APIs let you easily connect data across your existing digital toolkit. Enhance your operations without changing the workflows you’ve spent years perfecting.
Claude
OpenAI
Inventory app questions
Devices, scanning, and what the app can do.
What is an inventory app?
An inventory app puts your stock system on a phone, for the work that happens on the shelf, at a trade stand or in a van rather than at a desk. The Qoblex app works against the same account as the web app, so an order taken or a count made on the phone is in the system straight away, with nothing to copy across later.
Which devices does the app run on?
iPhone, iPad and Android phones and tablets, on iOS 14 or later and Android 8 or later. It is the same app on all of them, working against the same account as the web version.
Do I need a barcode scanner?
No. The app uses the phone’s camera to read barcodes, for finding products, building orders and counting stock. If you already own handheld scanners, they work in the web app too: the stocktake scanner takes whatever the scanner types.
What can I do on the app?
Browse the catalogue, create and edit sales orders, pick, pack and dispatch shipments, and run stocktakes and adjustments. It is built for the jobs that happen away from a desk rather than as a copy of the whole system, and it does not replace the web app.
Does it work without a signal?
The app reads and writes your live account rather than a copy of it, so a reliable connection where the work happens is worth having. If coverage on your warehouse floor is patchy, try the workflow your team will use, in the place they will use it, before you roll the app out.
How much does the app cost?
The app is a paid add-on on Starter and Business, and is included on Scale. It is per account rather than per person, so your whole team uses it once it is on. See pricing for current terms.
How do I get it?
Turn on Mobile Access under Integrations, then download the app from the App Store or Google Play links shown there and sign in with your Qoblex account. The products, customers and stock are already there.
Can I stop one person using the app?
Yes, through their permissions. Mobile Access is one switch for the whole company, so turning it off removes the app for everyone. To limit one person, change what their user can do, and the app shows them only that.
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