Zebra DS2208 and DS2278 setup: USB, cradle and Bluetooth

This guide covers both scanners of the Zebra DS2200 family. The corded DS2208 works as soon as you plug it in. The cordless DS2278 needs a charge and a Bluetooth link, either to its CR2278 cradle or straight to a PC, tablet or phone. Follow the steps for your model, then test a scan.

Before you start

Both models read 1D and 2D bar codes, including QR codes on paper and on phone screens. Out of the box they act as a USB keyboard (Zebra calls this USB Keyboard HID). Whatever you scan is typed where the cursor is, so you need no driver or special software.

All settings are changed by scanning programming bar codes from the PRG. You can scan them from paper or from a monitor: zoom in until the bars are sharp and do not run together. This guide names each bar code exactly as the PRG prints it. Settings stay stored when the scanner is switched off.

Connect the DS2208 by USB

1. Push the cable's modular connector into the port on the back of the scanner until it clicks. Tug gently to check that it is locked.
2. Plug the USB connector into your PC or a USB hub.
3. The scanner sounds its power-up beeps (low, medium, high). It detects the USB host by itself and starts as a USB keyboard.
4. Windows uses its own built-in keyboard driver. If it asks about the new device, accept the suggested driver.

The PC powers the scanner over USB. An external power supply is only needed if the host does not power the scanner.

To remove the cable later, press the connector clip through the small slot in the scanner base and slide the cable out.

Test a scan

1. Open Notepad or any empty text field and click into it.
2. Aim at a bar code, pull the trigger and hold it until the scanner beeps.
3. The LED flashes green and the data appears as typed text.

Two things surprise many users at this point:

• No line break after the scan. By default the scanner sends the data without Enter. To add Enter or Tab, see our Enter and Tab suffix guide.
• Wrong letters or symbols. The scanner assumes a US English keyboard. If your PC uses an Estonian, Finnish, Latvian, Lithuanian, Polish or Czech layout, set the matching country keyboard type: see our keyboard layout guide.

Set up the stand for hands-free scanning

This step is for the DS2208 with the Gooseneck Intellistand. The stand is included in our DS2208 kit.

1. Unscrew the wing nut from the bottom of the scanner cup.
2. Fit the bottom of the gooseneck into the opening on top of the stand base.
3. Tighten the wing nut under the base to hold the cup and neck in place.
4. Bend the neck to the angle you want.
5. Optional: fix the base to the counter with two wood screws or double-sided tape (not supplied).

Put the scanner front first into the cup. A sensor switches it to hands-free (presentation) mode, so it reads any bar code you hold in front of it. Take it out and it returns to trigger mode. You do not need to change any settings.

Charge the DS2278

The battery is already inside the scanner. Zebra recommends charging it fully before first use.

1. Connect the cradle to the PC with the USB cable (next step), or to a power source.
2. Insert the scanner straight down into the cradle. It tips forward slightly so that its contacts meet the cradle contacts.
3. The cradle LED blinks amber while charging and turns solid green when the battery is full.

Charge time depends on the power source. From empty, Zebra quotes about 5 hours for a full charge from a BC 1.2 USB port or an external 5 V supply, and up to 17 hours from a standard USB port. Charge only between 0 and 40 °C. Above 40 °C the battery does not charge.

Connect the cradle and pair the DS2278

This is the standard setup. The scanner talks to the cradle by Bluetooth, and the cradle passes the data to the PC by USB.

1. If you use an external power supply, connect it to the cable and the outlet first.
2. Plug the USB cable into the PC, then into the host port on the cradle. The cradle LED lights green.
3. Insert the scanner into the cradle. Pairing on insertion is on by default. The scanner beeps low then high when the connection is made, and the cradle LED goes off and on again in green.
4. Wait for the connection beeps before you scan anything.

Instead of inserting the scanner, you can scan the pairing bar code on the back of the cradle. A high/low/high/low beep confirms that the scanner read it, and a low/high beep follows when the link is up.

One cradle pairs with one scanner. If you pair a second DS2278 with the same cradle, the first one is disconnected. Use only the CR2278 with the DS2278: Zebra states that no other scanners or cradles are compatible.

Or pair the DS2278 directly by Bluetooth

Without the cradle as a receiver, the DS2278 connects to a PC, tablet or phone as a Bluetooth keyboard (HID). The cradle can still charge the scanner from a USB port or adapter.

1. Scan HID Bluetooth Classic. It is on the Pairing page of the DS2278 Quick Start Guide and in the PRG section "Human Interface Device (HID) Keyboard Emulation".
2. On the PC, tablet or phone, open the Bluetooth settings and search for new devices.
3. Select the scanner. It appears as DS2278 followed by its serial number.
4. Wait for the low/high connection beep, open a text field and test a scan.

If a phone or tablet does not find the scanner, scan Limited Discoverable Mode (PRG section "Discoverable Mode"). The scanner then stays visible for 30 seconds and its green LED flashes. Pull the trigger to start another 30 seconds.

On Windows and Android, Zebra's free Scan-To-Connect utility pairs in one step: it shows a bar code on the screen, and you scan it with the DS2278. To go back to the cradle later, scan Cradle Bluetooth Classic (PRG section "Radio Communication Host Types") and insert the scanner into the cradle.

Range and what happens out of range

The DS2278 has a Class 2 Bluetooth radio. Zebra quotes at least 10 m in open air with line of sight, and up to 100 m with the CR2278 cradle. Walls, shelving and other radios reduce this.

• When the link drops, the scanner tries to reconnect for 30 seconds while its green LED blinks.
• If that fails, it sounds a long low/long high beep. Pull the trigger to try again.
• Bar codes you scan while it is reconnecting are not sent. You hear the transmission error beep (four long low beeps).

If staff regularly walk out of range, consider Out of Range Batch Mode (PRG section "Batch Mode"). The scanner then stores bar codes while disconnected, roughly 500 typical retail codes, and sends them when it is back in range. If stored codes must survive the scanner being switched off, also turn on Persistent Batch Enable (PRG section "Persistent Batch Storage").

Fine-tune with 123Scan

For more than one or two settings, use Zebra's free 123Scan utility for Windows. Connect the DS2208 by its USB cable, or the DS2278 through its cradle. 123Scan then lets you:

• change settings in a wizard, such as suffixes, beeper and symbologies
• save them as a configuration file and load it into further scanners
• print the whole configuration as a single programming bar code
• view scanned data and update the scanner firmware