4 ms·
One thing that may not be too familiar to the Americans, but this looks a lot sturdier (read:larger) because it isn't a swiper like Square. It is a chip reader,
by lachyg 14y ago
One thing that may not be too familiar to the Americans, but this looks a lot sturdier (read:larger) because it isn't a swiper like Square. It is a chip reader, see: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chip_and_PIN http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chip_and_PIN
- rmc 14y agoHeads up, If you're an American going to Europe, regular swipe only credit cards won't work as often here. Nearly all point-of-sale credit card machines require chip & pin. Or you'll wind up like some tourists in my local supermarket unable to use their credit card.
- ErrantX 14y agoWhilst many places often refuse to swipe any more (which I suppose is their prerogative) it does actually work. If the chip/pin reader has the swipe slot at the top then it will work. Tesco don't have the swipe slot, and they now train till staff to say they can't swipe cards. But it does work on the till itself (I know this because when a friend visited we made the poor till attendant try it :)). EDIT: also, interestingly, it looks like this service only uses the chip feature, not the pin :)
- JonnieCache 14y agoIncreasingly, most shops do not offer the ability to swipe/sign. I think it is their right to refuse to do so.
- jedc 14y agoIIRC, the law states that if your card has a Chip/Pin, you have to use it. It basically ignores the case of swipe cards. Generally I've found that swipe almost always works, it's just that most people don't know that it does. (And you have to be willing to help show them how.)
- ralfn 14y agoIn holland the hardware still supports swipe, but the store's bank will not. Only hotels are, for now, exempt. The skimming just got out of hand.
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- oliwarner 14y agoThis is nonsense (at least in the UK and France). Yes there is preference for chip & pin but every reader I've seen supports swipe & sign still. Chips break, contacts corrode. It's there as a backup. (And yes, this totally defeats the security aspect of C&P)
- jnye131 14y agoFor transactions in the UK the merchant can also take a signature for low value transactions on a chip and pin card. There is more risk with this though.
- biafra 14y agoIt also works in Germany. Where they accept credit cards at all.
- ernesth 14y agoIn french trains, the conductor's card reader only supports chip, the automats in train stations also don't support swipe.
- simonw 14y ago"(And yes, this totally defeats the security aspect of C&P)" As I understand it, C&P isn't meant to be more secure for users - it's meant to be more "secure" for banks, since if someone fakes your signature it's not your fault (and the bank has to swallow the loss), but if someone gets hold of your PIN it IS your fault.
- fauldsh 14y agoI used to work in a small supermarket, towards the end of last year we were being directed not to accept credit cards.
- masklinn 14y ago> Yes there is preference for chip & pin but every reader I've seen supports swipe & sign still. Many automated machines (e.g. gas stations) don't support swipe at all, only chip & pin. And in Belgium, most of the terminals in smaller shop seem to be swipe-less, they're pretty big square things and only have a slot for chip-based (above the screen rather than below), no swipe slot.
- antr 14y agothat ain't true. My Visa is swipe, and my Amex chip. All places accept both swipe and chip & pin, no matter how small the place is. Just make sure that if you swipe you have ID w/ photo with you.
- rsynnott 14y agoCertainly _all_ don't. New equipment distributed in Ireland, particularly to smaller businesses, often don't have swipe readers at all.
- ralfn 14y agoIn Holland the policy is now to only allow pin based transactions using the chip. The magnectic stripe is no longer supported. So, although most hardware is still technically capable to swipe, no bank is supporting it any more. It was in response to eastern europe based organized crime, that was modifying cash machienes. Likewise, all online bank transactions use a secondary device for authentification. If you visit holland, and only bring a credit card, make sure you get cash at your hotel, the airport or a bank, because you cant use it anywhere else.
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- davidw 14y agoMy US credit cards work fine here in Italy.
- com 14y agoHeads up, if you're an American going to Europe, be aware that attitudes to living on credit or via credit cards are at times very different. In Belgium and the Netherlands, it's not usual to see supermarkets even taking credit cards, and some restaurants (!) don't either. This is changing, but slowly.
- rmc 14y agoHere in Ireland credit cards about very commonly accepted in many shops, supermarkets and restaurants.
- objclxt 14y agoConversely, good luck buying gas from an automatic pump if you're in the US and paying with a European card. In the absence of a PIN they'll ask for a ZIP code, which you don't have.
- julian_t 14y agoAs a Brit in NY, when I swipe my UK card to by a Metro pass I'm asked for my ZIP code. I just put in the ZIP code of my apartment and have never had any trouble. A teller at the bank told me that since it isn't a US card they ignore it anyway...
- norswap 14y agoI live in Belgium and all supermarkets I know of take credit cards. Maybe we don't agree on the definition of supermarket (to me it means something like Wal-Mart; in Belgium: Carrefour, Champion, Colruyt, ...), but I'll say that if it has a parking, then it most probably takes credit cards.
- SagelyGuru 14y agoIn France, they only seem to have automatic fuel pumps and they only accept local credit cards. They don't take cash and there is no staff to appeal to. As a foreign tourist (not even from the US) I had been reduced to begging the natives to fill up my car for me in return for cash and had been looked at like a bum (hobo, scammer). Oh well, I guess 'tat fiiil tiiiich zi roasbifs!' :)
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