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Square Steps Up Their Hardware Game with a Real P.O.S.
By Ray Hu - May 14, 2013
Looks cool, but what does it actually do?The acronym "P.O.S." always struck me as somewhat ironic: most folks who have worked in retail know that it's short for Point Of Sale, but it also has a pejorative meaning in common parlance. When it launched in 2010, Square's register app marked a digital solution to the former—precisely because extant payment gateways so often might be characterized as the latter.
Today, they announced a major upgrade from the now-iconic card reader. Square, the company making commerce easy for everyone, today announced Square Stand, beautiful new hardware for brick and mortar businesses that turns an iPad into a complete point of sale. With local businesses increasingly tearing out their old point of sale systems to run Square Register, Square Stand gives merchants a remarkable new way to manage and grow their business, all for the price of a cash register.
"Local business owners take as a given that they need an ugly, slow, expensive, and complicated point of sale system cluttering their counter," said Jack Dorsey, co-founder and CEO of Square. "Square Stand is elegant, fast, affordable, and easy to use. Whether you're selling cupcakes, cardigans, or cappuccinos, running your business with Square has never been easier."
Designed by Ammunition Group in collaboration with Square, the simple swiveling stand is designed as an all-in-one system. The card reader is discreetly integrated into the base, providing a larger and more stable slot for swiping.
They've also managed to cast a young Julianne Moore in the role of a lifetime:
Just three months ago, Square released an alternate P.O.S. solution with Business in a Box, a package that includes a slim stand, a cash drawer and a receipt printer for $249; the new Square Stand comes in at $299.
It's widely being hailed as a potential gamechanger, and I must say I'm curious as to whether merchants will see the Pros Of Stand and become Proponents Of Square—as of today's announcement, Square is accepting preorders for the July 8 ship date.
Via TechCrunch
Ray Hu
Formerly an editor and currently a contributor to Core77 (among other publications), Ray brings a broad interest in popular culture, media, and technology — alongside an abiding passion for art, music, and cycling — to his practice as a journalist and critic.
8 Comments
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To richehttp://pos-ar.com/ ng,
Do you know how I can do NFC payments throught this POS system.1!Report as spam -
I'm surprised that this design only has the sole magnetic strip reader for taking payments. Why not include chip technology or NFC payments? Both should already be part of the makeup of most credit cards by now (at least here in Canada)!Report as spam
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I have a question with the app and how it applies to tipping. Our food service uses the tip option in that we relinquish the ipad so the customer has the option to give (or not give) a tip (instead of asking them if they want to add a tip). With this way, I can see this as getting rid of the tip option, demoralizing the peons!Report as spam
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The card slide slot looks to be poorly positioned (facing up) as it will be more susceptible to debris. Also encasing a metal and glass device in plastic does it a disservice.!Report as spam
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My question is a little more prosaic. How do you charge the ipad during a long and busy day?!Report as spam
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The placement of the card reader looks to make it very susceptible to debris. Also encasing something made from glass and metal in plastic isn't very elegant.!Report as spam
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@Slippyfish - Details are scant at the moment; here's the source: https://twitter.com/rdbrunner/status/334363234595393536 We'll keep you posted on any updates...!Report as spam
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What does this mean? "Designed by Ammunition Group in collaboration with Square" Is Square broke? Did Ammo give their work for free? Did Ammo 'let' Square contribute to the design? Or is that how we talk about clients and consultants these days?!Report as spam
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