Entering the Australian market earlier this year, mobile payments company Square has announced that you can now get purchase one of their card readers at Harvey Norman.
Square provides both the hardware and software for accepting Visa, Mastercard, AMEX or even debit card payments by swiping the card through their mobile dongle, and at just $19, the Square reader hardware is incredibly cheap. The payments structure isn’t too bad either with transactions processed through Square processed with a 1.9% transaction fee taken out.
The reader is also available from other Australian retailers Officeworks and surprisingly Bunnings, as well as through the Square website.
The $19 Square reader operates by swiping a card through the dongle which connects to a mobile device via the 3.5mm jack. Earlier this year however Square released a contactless version supporting tap & pay, but only in the US. When launching Square indicated that their contactless version of the Square reader would be coming soon. We spoke to Square regarding the plan to launch the contactless version here in Australia and they advised:
When Square first entered the Australian market, the overwhelming feedback from customers was that they were excited for the classic Square device that was small, mobile and connected via the headphone jack of the user’s device. Square Reader for Chip Cards, which we launched in March 2016, is designed for mobility, affordability and minimum form factor—perfect for those mobile businesses like tradespeople, personal trainers, market sellers, food trucks, micro businesses, startups and many more. It’s small, low-cost and an ideal entry-point for any new startup business into accepting Visa, MasterCard and American Express card payments.
Square’s newest contactless Reader was released earlier this year in the US, and we’re excited by contactless payments in our local market. It’s a huge part of our exciting product roadmap for Australia.
To get started, grab yourself a card reader and sign up on the Square website.
