ToteScan

The idea, application, its interface are smart, but local keyboard cannot be used. So, location and item names can be entered in English only.

How often have we all said “I have one of those, I just don’t know where I put it”? That never happens to me now. I know exactly where I store things. ToteScans has been a game changer for me! The labels are not just for totes and storage bins. I have one on each of my closets as well as my outside storage unit. The app works perfectly too. I give ToteScans 10 stars.

Okay so I didn't like that I needed to give you my email and it required a confirmation code, but I did it anyways... but then the code either takes forever or just didn't send. I'm not trying to deal with all this hassle for an app that doesn't need to be online.

This worked great for a good while but now all the items added from several of my totes are no longer in the app.

You cannot use the app unless you purchase their proprietary labels in-app.

The Pros: 1. Easy to set up 2. Can use multiple pictures for each entry 3. Easy to “move” totes between locations 4. Easy to add or subtract items, or move items between totes The Cons: 1. Search only pulls up to 50 items based on, I’m gathering, the first 50 items entered. Therefore, anything past this number is just in the ether. As a collector of Jim Shore collectible figurines, I assure you I have more than 50 in various totes in various locations. (Don’t tell my husband.) 2. Along the search line, it’s unclear whether regular Boolean search queries work or not. I haven’t tried, but then again, there is little information out there, either. The con is a lack of instruction on using the app, which I guess is the UI/UX. 3. Nowadays, if I know I’ll probably want to use an app on my iPad, I won’t even download an iPhone only app. It’s time to have a true iPad version, plus usable for the Mac or PC. 4. Which leads to the fourth con - you should be able to run a sort and then print from your Mac or PC. It’s an extra step to receive the data in a format that needs to be then dumped into excel, then sorted and printed. I don’t normally review apps but this is one I do use a lot. The labels are cheap to buy, so that’s the main revenue stream, but fixing the app would go a very long way for those of us who aren’t as clever as more computer literate folks out there (who have discovered using other programs like airtable). I would sing the praises if you’d get your UI/UX fixed.

The only failure was when I forgot my email address to log in. Contacted support and was back on track in about an hour. I highly recommend.

This is a long review, but I think y’all will appreciate the content. Wanting to organize multiple areas in my home, I ordered ToteScan. I couldn’t be happier with the product. I’ve linked ToteScan with Alexa, and after receiving excellent, and prompt, customer support via email, I learned how to properly phrase a question. For example “find star bit screws” pulled up all my star bit screws. Before contacting customer support I was saying “find my star but screws”, which didn’t work. Customer support also informed me that you can speak the keywords you input in any order to find you items, which is helpful. You have an option to make your ToteScan QR codes private or public. Because your information is stored in the cloud, anyone in my family can scan the QR code that is public with their camera and click the open QR code through their browser and it brings up the contents with pictures. Because there are no duplicate QR codes sold, I’m comfortable with making my totes “public”. I REALLY like this feature, and have included a small video to demonstrate. As for reviews that said that QR codes are hard to find by themselves (they ARE), I purchased some 1 inch stickers that have 124 letters and numbers and logically assigned a letter and number to each tote. (H 1 for my hardware tote, B 1 for my bathroom, etc.) The stickers are cheap and easy to use and see. Finally, use consistent naming protocols to make your product easier. When using text search or Alexa, some items initially didn’t come up so I looked to make sure I used the same labeling terms. Editing was easy, and I then was able to name each successive tote contents thoughtfully and logically. We had to repair a door that wasn’t hanging properly, and I was SO PLEASED to search for my 3 1/2 inch star bit screws, and know exactly where they were. (I have a large container that held Parmesan, and I put several items inside it, and specified in the naming that’s where they were 🙂. ) I am completely confident that I will purchase more QR codes through ToteScan. I’ve already told several family members how wonderful a product it is, and will continue to do so. I highly recommend this product.

To close a picture on iOS just swipe up

In the middle of adding items and packing, the app stopped working. Couldn’t see my items and couldn’t add. Have to stop packing until I can get the app to work