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Check prices on your iPhone with Pricecheckah

by Mel Martin May 30th 2009 at 2:30PM

This app does what you would expect from its name. It checks prices. You type in a UPC code, an ISBN number (books and video) or even a name of a product.

Pricecheckah [App Store] is US$4.99 At the set up screen you can choose online retailers like Amazon or Buy.com, and brick and mortar retailers like Target or Walmart. You can also add your own. I added Best Buy by just typing bestbuy.com.

I typed in a UPC code and the app made several suggestions and did find some better prices. Of course you could do this from any browser using a site like Froogle. This app, of course, is meant to be portable, but you might not be very popular at some retailers doing price comparisons. On the other hand, unless you are in a hurry to buy something, you will likely find a better price online.

Some things I don't like: The app wants my email address and a password. I'm not wild about giving someone my email when I'm not sure what they are going to do with it. Sometimes the app is very slow; I touched the settings button and it took several seconds to get to the settings screen. It didn't happen every time, but enough times to mention it. It also locked up a couple of times and said it couldn't find a network when WiFi was on, and my wireless router was right next to my iPhone.

I also think the app is pricey at US$4.99. There is a similar app called Checkout Smartshop [App Store] which is the same price but has many more negative reviews. The developers promised a bar code scanner and it hasn't arrived. We've also looked at RedLaser [App Store], which does have a barcode scanner. It worked OK for me, but many people are having problems with it. It's US$1.99.

In summary, it doesn't look like the perfect shopping app is here, but hopefully developers will keep trying. Pricecheckah works on the iPhone or iPod touch, and checks prices in either the US or the UK.

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This app does what you would expect from its name. It checks prices. You type in a UPC code, an ISBN number (books and video) or even a...
 

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14 Comments

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Steve

i usually use fastpricecheck.com for this stuff. no native app like this one, but you can just access the mobile site with safari.

June 01 2009 at 7:42 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Rick

I would hold off on buying any program that claims to read barcodes until the next iPhone comes out. The camera that exists right now is completely useless for reading barcodes. The only way I have gotten any of these programs to work is with the special case that has the lens on it. For reading barcodes, that's just unacceptable.

Wait for the next iPhone.

June 01 2009 at 2:29 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Aaron

Thanks for the review and the feedback from end users. We've added an option now that allows people to use the program without creating an account. We are working on fixing the slowness with bringing up the preferences as well as adding other options in the next version.

Thanks again.

May 31 2009 at 10:22 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
frank.lowney

I would expect apps in this category to use the camera to recognize bar codes and go from there. Typing in UPC codes takes too much time and is very error prone.

May 31 2009 at 6:35 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
h0mi

Savebenjis is $0.99 not free.

May 31 2009 at 12:33 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
1 reply to h0mi's comment
dokihara

Ah, sorry. It used to be a free app when I got it. Didn't realize it's 99c now.

May 31 2009 at 2:01 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
culsoh

Wow! Thanks for the tip! This thing is great. I wanted to like Save Benji's it is way too overkill for just checking a price at the store. I bought it for 99c but it hasn't saved me a dime. This thing on the other hand already saved me 10 bux at the local bookstore!

I emailed them about the required email for registration and they responded lighting quick. I guess it's so you can log into the website via a computer to find things on you entered on your iPhone if you need it later. Handy for sure, but I doubt I'll use it other than on my iPhone.

Many apps use require email to use them. Facebook, Pandora to etc. I just use a different password with each one. It's not like I'm going to miss out on gems like this because they want my email...

May 31 2009 at 4:26 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
mannyv

Or if you're lazy you can use fizzydeals, pricematch, or pricewatch with Mobile Safari. Why bother with a dedicated app?

May 30 2009 at 11:31 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
dokihara

SaveBenjis does this and it's a free app.

May 30 2009 at 10:49 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
designr

Re: "The app wants my email address and a password."

That's why I manage my own email domain (via dreamhost). I can create an email address just for this app (i.e., Pricecheckah@mydomain.com). Then, if they send me spam or I get tired of them, I can make them go away without affecting any other email accounts.

May 30 2009 at 8:00 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Benoit

try pic2shop: reads barcodes, free, no registration

May 30 2009 at 5:42 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
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