GIA Jumps Into the 21st Century – Are You Leaping With Them?

We live in a fast paced world these days. I can hardly keep up at my age with all this technology – heck, I can hardly work my phone – and now the GIA has joined the fray.  We can now say good-bye to those paper certifications that we put in our plastic folders because now it all going to be online and when it’s printed out it’s going to have a QR code on it to prove it’s yours.

What’s a QR Code and What is it Going to Prove?

Now, for those of you that are tech savvy, you might want to skip this part of the article because you already know the answer, but before I did my research, I didn’t have a clue what a QR code was, what it did or why the GIA needed it or was going to use it.  I DID know what it looked like though, so I think I should get some points for that, and yes, I am patting myself on the back.

A QR code is short for ‘Quick Response’ code. Basically, a QR code is a barcode that can be read by a smart phone or scanner.  This code can be placed anywhere and can contain pretty much anything you want.  For instance, that one you see on this page, if you scan it, you will get all our website info into your phone.  Sorry, I had to do it!

What is the GIA going to be doing with the QR codes? This is really ingenious if you think about it, the QR codes printed on each report will verify the document’s authenticity through direct access to GIA’s online Report Check service that will include all GIA grading and identification reports.  That means that little black box of code will have all of your diamonds information in it and will validate that you have the diamond and it is what it is graded by the GIA.

GIA Has an App For That…

An app you say? Yes, not only is the GIA going to be QR compliant, they also have launched a diamond app for Android, Samsung Galaxy phones, iPhones, iPads and Kindle Fires.  And, while you are at it, you can also download their Gems & Gemology app to learn about…well, gems and gemology!

The diamond app boasts interactive features, video content and information on the 4Cs of diamond quality. Users can learn about diamond color across the GIA D-to-Z scale, see typical inclusions on the clarity scale and find out how a cut can make a significant difference in the look of a diamond. The app also explains the GIA diamond grading report, and provides direct access to the report check.

But this app is social too, because you can tweet, email, Facebook and share “My Diamond Wish List”.  My Diamond Wishlist are diamonds that you can save in your personal with list file to gaze at later or send to your lover as a hint!

Making the Leap

Welcome to the 21^st Century GIA, as you get a new facelift for your website, you start to implement your QR Codes, you cut down on your use of paper and you just generally make all of our lives easier when it comes time to getting our gems graded.  But, for those of us who are old school and like the old way, excuse me while I go and figure out how to make all this fandangled high techie stuff work!