This Privacy Policy explains how Cartridge by Tristonia (“we”, “our”, or “us”) handles your information when you use our mobile application.
Last Updated: 12th of October 2026
Cartridge has no account and no server of its own. Your collection lives on your device. We never see your games, your notes, your ratings or what you paid.
Cartridge lets you scan the barcode on a video game case, or search for a game by name, and keep it on a virtual shop shelf on your phone. It is free, with no ads and no in-app purchases.
We do not collect any personal data. There is no sign-in, no analytics and no advertising in the app.
The camera is used while the scanner is open, to read the barcode on a game case. The camera image is processed on your device by Google’s ML Kit barcode scanner and is not saved or sent anywhere.
You can also take a photo of a box or cartridge, using your phone’s camera app. Cartridge reads the text on that photo on your device with Google’s ML Kit text recognition, to work out the game’s title. The title it reads is then searched for on Wikipedia, as described below. The photo itself is never uploaded. If you choose to use your photo as a game’s cover, a copy of it is kept on your device with the rest of your collection, and is deleted when you remove the game or pick another cover.
When you scan or type a barcode, Cartridge sends that barcode number to UPCitemdb to find the product name and platform: upcitemdb.com/privacy
To find the cover art and a short summary, Cartridge then sends the game’s title to Wikipedia (run by the Wikimedia Foundation): foundation.wikimedia.org/wiki/Policy:Privacy_policy. The same happens when you search for a game by name, or when Cartridge reads a title off your photo.
Only the barcode or title is sent, along with the information any web request carries, such as your IP address. No account, name or other details from the app are included. Cover images are downloaded from Wikipedia, or from the shop image links that UPCitemdb returns for that product.
The barcode scanner and the text reader are Google’s ML Kit, which runs on your device. ML Kit may send Google basic diagnostic information so Google can keep the scanner working well: device model and Android version, the app’s package name and version, a per-installation identifier that is not meant to identify you, and performance and error figures. It does not send camera images or photos. Google describes this here: developers.google.com/ml-kit/android-data-disclosure
Your games, covers, notes, ratings, prices and settings are stored on your device. If you have Android backup turned on, Android may include them in your device backup to your own Google account, so your collection comes back on a new phone. Uninstalling the app removes everything stored on the device.
If you use “Export as spreadsheet”, Cartridge creates a CSV file of your collection and hands it to the app you choose to share it with. Where it goes from there is up to you.
We don’t share or sell data, because we don’t collect any. The only things that leave your device are the barcode and title lookups and ML Kit diagnostics described above.
Cartridge is rated for a general audience (Everyone) and does not knowingly collect information from anyone, including children under 13.
If we update this Privacy Policy, the changes will be posted on this page with a revised “Last Updated” date.
If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy, please contact us: