Evaluating a Point of Sale System Hardware Before Purchasing
The basic POS systems you may see on a typical retail establishment consists of a cash register with or without a built in cash drawer, monitor, receipt printers, and an input device. It can also be a touch screen monitors, programmable keyboards, or scanners and handheld devices for inputting data into the POS system.
Touch screens: With its flexible user interfaces and programming, many retail business owners prefer to use touch screens. With this type of restaurant hardware, an employee can easily set orders and cancel an order within a second. It can also reduce mistypes and fasten ordering. Aside from that, touch screens are easier to position in any counter and even uses less electricity, although, they can be more prone to breakdowns.
Hand held devices: Restaurant POS equipment like PDAs, which are commonly wireless devices that transmits data back to its base station and into the POS system. You can also use the newer version, which is the write-on handhelds that allows you to write detail such as the orders and sends them directly to the kitchen! These types of handheld devices are perfect for your staff who interacts with your customers, when up-selling desserts and drinks roaming around table per table.
Keyboards: Most grocery stores prefer to use this type of POS systems, since they can program individual keys for specific item codes and prices. A standard keyboard consists of 101-key, like with any computer. Other have built-in magnetic stripe readers for processing credit cards, others are small and flat, like what we usually see in fast food chains.
Scanners: This restaurant hardware reads bar codes and converts it before inputting it’s information to a POS system computer. This device speeds up transactions and provide accurate data on products or services being purchased by a customer. It typically connects through Y-connectors (or wedges) which makes them function as an extension of your keyboard.
Customers’ volume: When it comes to serving different volumes of customers, using this restaruant hardware can be very useful. If the counter line has several customers, then its good to use a CCD scanner or entry-level laser scanner. If the line is loaded with customers, then autosensing laser scanners is the perfect choice. It’s a type of laser scanner that automatically turns on when you place an item in front of it, scans its code, and then turn off again. But if the counter line is overflowing with customers, an omnidirectional scanner would be the right scanner to use, using its 15 or 20 lasers simultaneously, it scans a bar code from any angle!
Other Restaurant Hardware To Consider
Cash drawers: Where you store cash, credit card slips, gift certificates, and other imporatant things. When looking to buy for a POS cash register, look for sturdy construction of at least 18-gauge steel. And since the usable life of a cash drawer is measured, make sure you can replace rollers, bearings, and other parts, because most cash drawers opens when a signal is released from the receipt printer.
Point of Sale printers: Every restaurant owner has them, every POS system needs one of course! POS printers are used for printing customer receipts and create credit card slips. The dot matrix printers, also known as impact printers, are inexpensive and uses ink ribbon to print on regular paper. While thermal printers use heat and special heat-sensitive paper to generate receipts. It is slightly expensive than a dot matrix printer because it’s faster and quieter when printing receipts. They are also more reliable because they have less moving parts.
POS Customer display: Also called the pole display. This restaurant hardware lets your customer view their item and its price, and can be used to support advertising. When buying a customer display, make sure that you check for the right height and width, which will perfectly fit your counter table, and its compatibility with your POS software.
The Check readers: If you don’t have one, I suggest getting one now. This device helps you be preventing check fraud by verifying essential account information, saving you tons of profit.
Magnetic stripe readers: A simple piece of POS hardware that is used to read credit cards. For added convenience, look for POS keyboards and touch screens that has a built-in magnetic strip reader, so you don’t have to buy a separate one.
Fingerprint ID readers: Mostly this type of hardware is used for employee login. But it is very helpful to limit which staff can access a POS terminal and prevent other staff from logging in inplace of somebody.
Remember, when purchasing for POS systems, hardware or software, make sure to know the item first before heading to your local supplier. It doesn’t matter how much money you spend on your POS equipment, always consider the environment where you’re going to use it. Regular cleaning keeps your keyboards and touch screens in top shape, to extend the useable life of your receipt printer, vacuuming and lubing would be the way and maintaining an over all clean workstation can help protect your POS stations from annoying dust and spills. You can always request for a FREE POS system quote online where local suppliers will offer you competitive price lists of any restaurant hardware and software you need based on the the information you give them. So you would never have to waste money buying the wrong POS systems.
For more information on restaurant POS systems or to have a local POS professional serving the restaurant industry in your location see more information at POS-For-Restaurants.com.
Tags: Point of Sale, POS, pos software, pos terminal, restaurant hardware, restaurant point of sale, Restaurant pos, restaurant pos equipment, restaurant pos system, restaurant software