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I have a USB barcode scanner which, when plugged into a Windows PC works fine, just as a keyboard it 'types' the barcode into whatever software is open.

I am attempting to use this with an Android tablet (Sony Tablet S running ICS 4.0.3) - to no avail. I can plug in a USB Keyboard and that works fine, but the scanner just doesn't work. (I get a beep when scanning, then the laser goes out and won't react to any further presses of the trigger until I unplug the USB cable.)

Any ideas? I've tried with a Nexus 7 and that works fine. Surprised it doesn't on the Sony as I thought the scanners just emulated a Keyboard anyway. If no specific solutions, is there any reason to be hopeful that the upcoming Jelly Bean update for the Sony could help? (Nexus is JB) or is it more likely to be hardware related?

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On a windows system, those things still need drivers to tell windows it's a basic input device. I'd imagine the sony is running an older version of android to the nexus that does not include support for that particular hardware. It's certainly going to be software compatibility rather than hardware. – Simkill Jan 10 at 15:03

migrated from superuser.com Jan 10 at 15:15

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