QR codes. Big in Japan, and China, right?

But lame in the US.

Or, maybe, QR codes have been a tech tortoise: advancing slowly, improving slightly, getting a tiny bit more popular every year?

That would match my experience. I found  QR (for "Quick Response") technology to be the most solid, dependable connectivity tech out there. 

In fact they may even be getting hipper. TechCrunch and Wired think it's possible.  

Certainly some of the ways QR codes are being used in China is amazing. 

To add to their appeal: there are plenty of free QR apps on both Android and iPhone devices. You can even customize your QR code, as I did, above -- adding the Boston Detours logo in the center.

The iPhone's native camera app will also, now, automatically recognize a QR code, and display the link in Safari. 

So QR got a slot on the control panel.