I am posting this in "Tech Talk" because it is a cool new tech item. It could have been placed elsewhere because it may be useful to many offices that accept credit card payments.
I was alerted to "The Square" (at squareup.com) by my part-time IT consultant, budding entrepreneur son. This is a free credit card reader that plugs into an iPhone, iPad, or Android device and allows you to instantly take credit card payments with your smart phone or tablet. The money is quickly credited to your bank account (maybe a day or two slower than a bank-provided reader). The reader is free. It is tiny and portable and can be used anywhere you have phone connectivity.
The cost is amazingly low: 2.75% per transaction if swiped, and slightly higher if you key in the credit card number. The last time I looked, I was averaging more than twice that with my current system. We got one to use in a satellite office where we have no card reader, and it works well. The cost is FAR less than our regular machine and I am thinking of using it exclusively.
There may be security issues (though they seem to have been considered and addressed) and perhaps the price will go up later....but for now this seems like a great option if want to take credit card payments but have not yet started, and may be a replacement for your current system if you have one.
