EPOS: The changing landscape of ePos till system providers and models
The ePos till system market has suddenly become much more complex and diversified.
New technological choices have made it possible for cashless system specialists to compete against established ePos pure players. But these new technologies have also allowed very well known b2c computer and electronics brands to enter the game, without even developing specific hardware.
Pure players
Two categories of ePos system till pure players: established specialists who have learned the trade back in the days of electronic or even mechanical tills, and new competitors banking on cashless systems.
1) Traditional till makers
Traditional till makers include:
• NCR: Being the first provider to introduce bar code scanning, to offer wireless ESL solution and an integrated keyboard and display, NCR is arguably the most important company in pos-related equipment.
• Sam4S also proposes a very wide range of entry-level, mid-range, rom-based as well as portable tills.
2) Cashless system specialists
These manufacturers managed to secure a significant market share by specialising in cashless systems, without drawers, only accepting credit or debit card payments:
• Poslab, a Taiwanese company with a complete line of tills,
• Digipos, which manufactures the A100 A300 A500 A550 cashless systems.
General computer products vendors
Many computer products providers known by the general public also propose complete ePos till system lines. Recent technology developments have caused established brands to face a unexpected competition...
1) Household names
Many well-know b2c computer product manufacturers have ventured into the till business for many decades.
• Toshiba became a majors provider of till systems after it took over IBM point of sale business arm. It produces the TCx and WILLPOS series of cash registers, the SurePOS 700, 500 and 300 models.
• Sharp does the XE and UP till series, and more complete ePos like the UP 9900V, UPV5500 and UP3515
• Fujitsu is a major player with its TeamPos series
• HP also does a few ePos tills, with their RP7 Retail System (7800 and 7100 models)
• Known for its calculators, Casio naturally extended its product lines to electronic tills in 1976. Current models include the VX-100, BT-9100 and QT-6600.
• Olivetti is still alive, and still doing b2b hardware, including electronic tills like the Nettun@ 7000int’l, Nettun@ 3000int’l and ECR 8200S.
2) New alternatives
With cashless payments becoming the norm rather than the exception, software becoming the decisive element in an ePos solution, more and more small businesses are now relying on products originally marketed as b2c. As long as tablet PCs have the right ePos software running, and peripherals like swipe or pin card readers, there’s no reason they can’t be considered as an appealing alternative to dedicated hardware, especially for small business owners.
Could the iPad become tomorrow’s best selling ePos till system?
Discover the buying guide for EPOS
-
Which ePos is right for a restaurant?
-
Hardware and software components of an ePos system
-
Are iPad Epos systems ready for you?
-
Which Epos is right for my Magento?
-
Which ePos is right for a retailer?
-
ePos software, the real driving force of a succesful ePos system
-
Point of sale fraud: new threats, new controls
-
Are free Epos software packages really worth it?