Hand Held Products announces support for the next generation of POS for the Microsoft .NET software platform

Hand Held Products image scanners support Microsoft's People-Ready Business for Retail Initiative with 2D imaging technology

Hand Held Products, a leading manufacturer of image-based data collection solutions, has announced that its line-up of barcode scanners will support the next generation of the software platform optimised for retail organizations, Microsoft POS for .NET version 1.11. This software platform provides .NET applications with a simple and consistent interface for communicating with Point of Service (POS) peripheral devices.

"We are very pleased Hand Held Products has continued to build on and expand our successful collaboration in the development of POS for .NET," said Ilya Bukshteyn, director, Windows Embedded Marketing, Mobile and Embedded Devices Division, Microsoft Corp. "This next generation technology lifts the restraints that once existed with many retail systems, making upgrades smooth and painless for retail customers."

"Hand Held Products is committed to helping retail customers maximise their technology investment throughout the store," said Mark Bunney, director strategic alliances, Hand Held Products.  "Our collaboration with Microsoft on the POS for .NET software platform provides retailers with increased efficiency which they can pass on to their customers."

Microsoft POS for .NET is a class library that is part of Microsoft Windows Embedded for Point of Service. The class library provides .NET applications with a simple and consistent interface for communicating with Point of Service (POS) peripheral devices, such as barcode scanners, magnetic card readers and receipt printers. In addition, POS for .NET includes a set of programming interfaces and base classes for vendors of POS peripheral devices.

As an integral industry partner in Microsoft's early development program, Hand Held Products successfully standardised on the POS for .NET software platform. This next generation of POS for .NET will include the capability to capture images and can more easily manage POS systems and their peripherals out of the box. The plug-and-play functionality lowers lifecycle costs by simplifying the setup, deployment and management of POS systems.

About Hand Held Products

Hand Held Products is the world's leading manufacturer of image-based data collection solutions, such as barcode scanners and mobile computers.

The company has a worldwide network of partners, and an extensive client base across many different markets. Based in the US, its European headquarters are in Eindhoven, the Netherlands.