The ICE 4000 Revolutionizes the Restaurant Experience

By
iApplianceWeb
(06/29/01, 10:06:14 AM EDT)

A revolution in the restaurant experience is taking place. Soon there will be no more waiting for servers to bring a bill, process a credit card, and present a slip to be signed. Hypercom Corporation has just reported a successful 90-day restaurant test of the ICE 4000 portable terminal, which can eliminate this hassle.

The handheld touch-screen consumer-activated card payment terminal allows waiters to process credit and debit card transactions and print receipts right at the restaurant table. The test at Tadpole's Restaurant in Brandon, Florida gave more than 1,000 customers the ability to pay at the table without delay, while retaining control of their credit or debit cards. The test was conducted by Florida-based Orion Commerce Group, an affiliate of Merchant Services Incorporated, Plainview, NY.

In addition to speed and convenience, consumer-activated, tamper-resistant terminals combat credit card "skimming," an alarmingly escalating form of fraud that is victimizing consumers, causing havoc with merchants, and costing the industry hundreds of millions of dollars every year.

"Using Hypercom's wireless ICE terminals, our waiters don't have to run back and forth to the cash register, and our customers don't have to wait for the bill and receipt. The amount of the bill appears on the terminal's touch-screen. The consumer checks it, enters the amount of the tip, signs their name, swipes their card, and out comes the receipt. It's easy, fast, and highly secure," said Tadpole restaurant owner Terry Haley.

The secure handheld ICE 4000 card payment terminal is a high performance, touch screen device. It is an Internet-enabled card payment terminal that supports the entire range of Hypercom's ePOS-infocommerce (ePic) functionality. It incorporates a firewall-protected multi-application operating system, EMV chip card capability, secure PIN pad, built-in HTML/HTTP Web browser, and integrated receipt printer. In addition to the embedded applications, the ICE 4000 supports a range of value-added applications and services, including: electronic signature and receipt capture, e-mail, on-screen advertising, interactive electronic coupons, and cash management reporting through a standard browser, as well as secure credit, debit, and smart card functions.

The ICE 4000 can be battery powered and worn or carried by service providers, or it can be wall-powered for stationary use. It also incorporates a graphics thermal printer, automatic paper cutter, magnetic stripe and smart card reader, and built-in lithium-ion battery.

The ICE 4000 offers a choice of communications options, with models supporting a variety of wireless WAN technologies (GSM, CDPD, Mobitex), 900 MHz wireless LAN technologies, and a wireline modem that incorporates Hypercom 9600 FastPOS technology and a LAN interface. Options and add-ons include an adapter for use in automobiles and memory options of 1.0 to 1.5 MB.