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What I'm looking for is a standalone barcode reader device that checks a barcode against a list of numbers stored on the device and returns the status (valid/not valid/...) associated with the specific code.

Is there any available device that does this or will i have to make something myself with a microprocessor, sd card reader / storage addon and barcode scanning engine?

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The first half of your question is a shopping question, and those are off-topic here. We'd love to answer the other part, about DIY, though. – stevenvh Oct 1 '12 at 13:51
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By the way, how many different item barcodes do you need to store, and must they be shared with other scanners, or a PC? – stevenvh Oct 1 '12 at 13:56
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You could do this with most any smartphone, though camera-based barcode reading tends to be slower than dedicated hardware. – Chris Stratton Oct 1 '12 at 14:01
Sorry about the shopping question. I think I could do that DIY. The device should store anywhere from 100 to maybe 10000 barcodes, all with a length of 12 digits. It shouldn't share the list with any other device. I also thought of smartphones, the thing is i want something very simple an foolproof – Benjamin Oct 1 '12 at 15:01
Basically you need a reader, a small programmable computer with SD card or similar storage, a power supply, and a user interface. A lot will depend on what you are comfortable with, your feelings on user interface, and the power requirements of the scanner device you choose. Of course such complete products already exist - delivery companies for example issue them to their drivers - scan the package, capture a signature, upload at some point. – Chris Stratton Oct 1 '12 at 18:10
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The Motorola 2090 comes with a couple of basic inventory applications that are close. The source for them is provided as part of their VS2008 SDK, and rolling your own with more specific requirements using VB.NET, C# or whatever, is pretty straightforward.

All of the handhelds we've used over the past 10+ years had SDKs available that provided everything from basic access to on-board scanners and radios right up to full blown IDEs and dev environments. If you can handle VB, then you can write code for any handheld.

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