Credit Card Machines

They connect via any working telephone line. Many merchant's use their existing phone line or tap the terminal into their fax line.

Merchants need to be aware that if they choose to use their existing phone line that they will not be able to be on the phone at the same time as doing a transaction.

Dial-up Debit & Credit Card Machines can take anywhere from 10 - 25 seconds per transaction to complete depending on the age of the hardware and software.

The advantage of a Dial-up Debit & Credit Card Terminal is that they are usually less expensive. The disadvantage of Dial-up Debit & Credit Card Terminal is that it takes longer to do a transaction, usually about 15 seconds. So if time is money this is not the most efficient debit & credit card terminal.

The second disadvantage to a Dial-up Debit & Credit Card Terminal is if you do not use a dedicated phone line for the Terminal then you can not be on the phone at the same time as you are processing a payment transaction.

However, a Dial-up Debit and Credit Card Terminal is the most cost effective for most Small to Medium Sized Businesses.

IP means connect through your High-Speed "Internet Provider". IP is sometimes known as DSL or Broadband too.

The advantage to an IP Debit and Credit Card Terminal is the speed. Transactions are usually processed in under 3 seconds. Another benefit is you can run many Debit and Credit Card Terminals through one Internet connection (up to 200 units).

IP can be cost effective if you have been using multiple Debit & Credit Card Terminals with all their own dedicated phone lines, because you would not need all those lines once hooked up through DSL.

However, most IP Debit & Credit Card Terminals have a "gateway" fee of around $10/month.

Wireless means it will works like a cordless phone and can be connected via dial-up or IP.

They operate more like a cordless phone. Usually a wireless Point-of-sale Terminal can reach up to 100-1000 meters away from the smart base.

Wireless Debit and Credit Card Terminals are used at restaurants where you can bring the terminal to the customer's table.

They are one the most expensive Point-of-Sale units to purchase.

Cellular means it will work like a cell phone giving as much mobility as a cell phone would. One of the most popular units currently requested by merchants.

A Cellular Debit and Credit Card Terminal would be mostly used for business's that do not have a fixed location.

If you do most of your sales via Trade Shows or you provide mobile services, like dog grooming, well then you would want to use a Cellular Debit and Credit Card Terminal.

Cellular units require a SIM Card and a Data Plan from a Cellular Phone Provider to work, usually this set-up by your Payment Processing Company. Fees for a Data Plan can be anywhere from 10 - 50/ month depending on how much Data you'll need available.

Between the Data and the unit hardware for a Cellular POS Terminal a merchant should budget around a $100-$120/month to maintain the unit and this is NOT including your monthly transactions fees.

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