In my 25+ years in the point of sale business I have never seen anything as nasty as the inside of used point of sale equipment that came out of a restaurant. Remove the cover and you will find a haven for all sorts of vermin and the things that they leave behind. Besides being a health hazard and requiring rubber gloves to touch all this “stuff” just helps to shorten the life of the equipment.
Cash registers and point of sale equipment has an expected life of 3 to 5 years. That is one of the reasons why you don’t see manufacturer warranties longer than 3 years. By the end of the warranty period it is time to replace the equipment with newer, more reliable hardware.
Another reason that used point of sale equipment is not a long-term solution is the obsolescence factor. We all know that the replacement for the computer you just bought is already being built. What makes this even more important is that the software being developed is also keeping pace with the hardware technology. The hardware bought 3 to 5 years ago will have a difficult time running today’s operating systems and the point of sale software that goes with it.
Not running the most current version of software means that your restaurant will not have the latest features available to you and what your competition is using to stay ahead of you. If you do try to run software that is not compatible with your outdated hardware you will find it slow to respond if it runs at all. This slow response will certainly affect your customer through slower service. Is that something you are willing to accept?
Used point of sale hardware simply is not a long-term solution to a start-up restaurant. The only exception to this would be if you could find a repossessed system that is less than a year old. In that case, you might could get 2 to 4 years of life out of the system. However, if someone is attempting to sell you hardware that is already 3 years old you need to go somewhere else and find a better solution.
Administrator
Buying real estate, houses, and businesses that have been around for a while is a good thing. In many cases it is better to buy these types of entities, clean them up and when you are done you have something that was better than when you found it.
In some cases, it is the right thing to do to buy a used car. Sometimes, a good cheap used car is just the answer to that 1st time driver or for a young couple starting off.
Buying used computers and point of sale equipment is almost never a good idea and should be avoided at all costs.
We get asked every week about buying used point of sale equipment. Here is what we tell people.
Roaches and other Vermin
Some of the most disgusting things I have even seen are the insides of computers and touch screens after they have been installed for a year or more. The vermin that have taken up residence inside this equipment would turn anyone’s stomach.
If you don’t believe me, think about where the term “computer bug” came from. You guessed it. A bug literally stepped across 2 circuits inside one of the earliest computers and shorted out the entire computer. Today’s computers and touch screens are just as attractive as those older models.
Electrical Problems
“Spikes” are fluctuations in electrical current that cause damage to computers over time. It is like a troll with a small hammer chipping away at the hard drive and other components inside computers. Without sensitive equipment these spikes are hard to measure but sometimes you can see them when the screen on the computer wiggles, your lights dim or get brighter and you can certainly see them during lightning storms when the power goes off and on.
Most computer systems are woefully under-protected from these electrical spikes. There is no way to tell if a computer has had any protection during its lifespan and certainly cannot tell when buying used equipment.
Old Technology
When you buy the latest and greatest computer you are buying technology that is already outdated. The replacement has already been designed and will be out in a few months. The computer industry prides itself on the creation of newer and faster machines and seems to come out with a new model every month.
Buying a used computer or point of sale system only puts you further behind. It will not take long before the software you have will be upgraded to a point that will not perform on old technology. It may be this point alone that will make your decision to buy used equipment a bad one.
Software upgrades are essential to not only keeping your software performing at its best, all software companies will eventually stop supporting older versions of their product. For instance, try gettting Microsoft to support Windows 3.11, Windows 95 or Windows 98. While there are computers today that still run these operating systems you will have a very tough time finding any support for these versions.
The Solution
Used equipment may be attractive in price but in the long-term you will be less than satisfied with the performance and upkeep of this bad investment.
The alternative is to look for low-cost hardware and software solutions. They are readily available on the Internet and most have a full 3-year manufacturer warranty. That is something else you don’t get with used equipment…a warranty.
Administrator
www.myposterminal.com
