To provide a portable electronic device and an information acquiring method, etc., which are convenient and easy to use for a user by using a bar code as an effective means for acquiring information.

The information acquiring method for commodities is provided with a step for reading out information for identifying a commodity which is expressed as a bar code and information related to the commodity identification information from a radio communicable portable terminal having a bar code reader, a transmission step for transmitting the commodity identification information, the related information and commodity information which are read out by the reading step to a previously registered on-line commodity information center and a receiving step for retrieving the on-line commodity information center on the basis of the commodity identification information transmitted by the transmission step and receiving the transmitted information from the retrieved center through the portable terminal.