What is a dataphone or POS (Point of Sale Terminal)
It is a small terminal that is installed in commercial establishments whose purpose is to process the payment of those customers who want to pay for their purchases by credit or debit card. What is a dataphone or POS (Point of Sale Terminal)
How does it work? What is a dataphone or POS (Point of Sale Terminal)
The dataphone is in charge of connecting the business with the authorizing center of the financial institution with which the paying client works. The purpose of this process is to confirm that the customer’s card is operational, has a sufficient limit to pay for the purchase and does not have any type of associated alert that suggests possible fraud. Its duration does not exceed 5 seconds as a general rule.
The dataphone is associated with a current account of the business in which the amount of the sales processed is paid periodically through a simple process called totalization, and which is usually daily.
What types are there?
The main criterion for classifying the different types of dataphones is the communication system used to transmit the data. There are POS terminals that work with the traditional fixed telephone network, and others, characterized by their mobility, either within the establishment through a WIFI network, or even outside the premises, through a GPRS communication such as the one used by mobile phones.
Here you can see some of the types of dataphones or POS that Banco Santander has:
Virtual POS : Designed for e-Commerce and online businesses as a robust and flexible payment solution to charge online stores or apps.
Fixed POS : Terminal designed for physical stores and businesses. Strong and fast.
Mobile POS : Ideal for charging inside and outside a premises thanks to its SIM card.
Wifi POS : Allows customers to be charged at any point where the Wi-Fi network reaches.
PC POS : For companies with several collection points or different establishments that want to centralize their business.