“Spotify Codes” lets you scan a bar code on a friend’s handset that takes you direct to the linked song, artist, or playlist.
So if, say, a friend plays you a new song they really love and you find that you also think that it’s pretty darn good, you can simply scan the song’s code to launch it in the Spotify app on your ow
n phone. With such an action only taking a split second, that certainly beats firing up a messaging app to send the link or taking down the track’s details to conduct a manual search.
It’s easy to locate a Spotify Code. When you’re playing a track, simply tap the three dots in the top right of the display to make the unique code appear.
Alternatively, if you want to scan a code, tap the search button at the bottom of your screen and then hit the camera icon at the top right. You might have to give Spotify permission to access your phone’s camera, but once you’ve done so, it’s just a case of pointing your camera at the code. It will only take your app a split second to recognize the code, at which point it’ll automatically pull up the linked track.
Of course, you don’t just have to be in the same room as someone to share music using Spotify Codes. You might want to post screenshots of codes on your favorite social media sites so other users can scan them off a PC screen or tablet display — or by getting the scanner to read the code off a saved image on your camera roll. Print publications can make use of them, too, while the artists themselves might choose to incorporate them into merchandise.
While it’s unlikely to be the must-have feature for new users looking for the best music streaming site, Spotify Codes is a useful addition to the service that music fans will take little time to make itself useful.
