What is an Android POS Machine?

Last updated on February 25th, 2023 at 02:45 pm

Android POS Machines are tablet-based systems that run on the Android platform. An Android POS system is open-source that can be used to carry out many transactions such as accepting payments, recording transaction data, tracking inventory, etc. Whether you’re a retailer, restaurateur or service provider, a point-of-sale (POS) system is an investment that can help your small business run more productively.

What is an Android POS machine?

The Android POS machine is similar to the point of sale (POS) machine that runs on the Android system. With great openness, huge development freedom, and strong compatibility, the Android POS machine allows users smoothly run multiple applications, easy to make secondary development and expands more scene-based applications.

Android platform is becoming a choice for developers to build a dedicated device including the Android POS Machine. Today, businesses can easily take an off-the-shelf Android device – like Samsung Tablets or any other android Tablets and install a POS app such as Square Point of Sale – POS or TabShop from Google Play and convert the tablet into a POS terminal, which can even be used as an offline POS app.

The system allows you to accessorize it with a credit card reader for mobile devices (like Square or PayPal) and a Bluetooth/USB printer (Android Mobile POS Printer) to set up a full-blown POS System.

Nowadays, the advanced and multi-functional Android POS machine is embraced by a large number of businesses and applied in various scenarios. The open-source Android allows to set up an Android POS terminal with a Printer driver for printing.

Read: 11 Best POS Machines in Nigeria for Small Businesses and Start-ups

How to build an Android-Based POS System

Use the steps illustrated below to set up an android POS using the Square POS application:

Get an off-the-shelf Android tablet with a 7” or 10” screen size. Example: Samsung Galaxy Tab series of Nexus series.
Get a credit card reader for processing credit card or debit card payments like Square.
Download and install the Square Point of Sale app from Google Play.
Log in to your Square Point of Sale Dashboard on your computer. Create items that you want to sell with their unit price information. You can edit or import the items as well.
Go to the tablet and launch the Square application. Sign in to start processing orders.

List of the Best Android POS Machine Applications

Square
Loyverse
Vend:
PayPal Zettle
Lightspeed
Clover POS
Shopify POS

Read Also: Which bank is good for POS business?

Best Android POS Machine Apps Compared

	Our Rating (out of 5)	Monthly Price	Mobile Transactions	Card Reader Costs	Offline Mode	To-Go/ Delivery	Inventory
Square	4.66	$0–$60	2.6% + 10 cents	$0–$49	✔	✔	Basic
Loyverse	4.55	$0	Varies	Varies	✔	✔	Basic
Vend	4.31	$99–$129	Varies	Varies	✔	–	✔
PayPal Zettle	4.24	$0	$2.29% + 9 cents	$29–$79	–	–	Basic
Lightspeed	4.02	$79–$239	2.6% + 10 cents	–	✔	✔	✔
Clover POS	3.94	$9.95–$39.95	Varies	Varies	✔	✔	Basic
Shopify POS	3.76	$29+	2.4%–2.7%	$49	–	✔	✔

Source

Android POS Machine: Features to Consider

A typical Android POS system should be able to support basic applications to extend its functionalities. A business should be able to, for instance, extend its functionality by integrating customer feedback or a loyalty management app on the POS tablet to allow customers to submit feedback after every transaction.

Read: PalmPay Pos Charges: How to Apply, Charges and Commission Information

The quality of the Android POSmachine largely depends on the features and in-built functionality. The basic features below are needed for Android POS machine advanced applications such as Printer. Below are the basic features that Android POS machines should support.

1. Print

2. Scanning code

3. NFC

4. Network communication

5. Battery life.