Bar-Code Readers Get Makeover to Spur Bustling Warehouses

Scanner guns—the bar-code readers used in warehouses world-wide—are getting a makeover, as retailers scramble to boost productivity amid a surge in online orders. The goal: shave a few precious seconds off the time it takes for workers to select, pack and ship items. Warehouse workers use scanners thousands of times a day. Retailers rely on the devices to keep track of hundreds of thousands of goods stored in, and moving around, massive distribution centers.