As more and more people eschew cash for credit cards, it’s becoming an imperative that companies are able to accept payments in the field. Field Technologies Online looks at a mobile printers that become all-in-one payment solutions.

Mobile payment applications have become common in retail environments, at public events, and at sports stadiums; everyone from the plumber to the pizza delivery guy accepts credit card payments. With fewer people keeping cash on hand, processing credit/debit transactions at the point of activity and providing receipts using mobile printers is essential for many businesses.

“There is a continuing interest in expediting payment processes, which means mobilizing the workforce,” says Peteris D’Carlo, general manager at Brother Mobile Solutions. “That means being able to capture or make payment on location rather than back in the office. The market spectrum is broad, from noncontract field service where payment is required, to insurance claim settlements where providing payment and capturing a signature is important to the claims settlement process.”

The need for this functionality is expanding to other applications as well, including government and food service, along with other verticals. “Public and private transportation services are expected to readily accept card payments, especially considering cash is not a favor- ite among business travelers,” says Leo Giocondo, senior product manager for thermal and consumables development at Source Technologies. “Additionally, we can expect to see an influx of line-busting payment devices at retailers as we move into the holiday buying season.”

In these applications, mobile printers play a key role, handling everything from credit/debit card processing to printing out checks. “Mature users are not enamored with anything that doesn’t give them reliable and fast documents,” says Paul Lehmann, director of product marketing and management at Datamax-O’Neil. “Printing devices naturally support payments better than most portable terminals because there is often a little more headroom to integrate payment collection technology without compromising the reliability of the solution.”

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ABOUT Field Technologies Online

Avatar photoField Technologies Online provides is a resource for the optimization of field workers, service and assets. The publication's goal is to provide companies in the field service, transportation/distribution, government, public works and utilities industries with information on mobile technologies that can be used to improve productivity and drive efficiency.