Considerations

The information contained in this document is meant to be a reference as opposed to specific usage levels or expectations, but the following points need to be considered when evaluating the average mobile data usage with PayFacto terminals and software:

1. The recommended data plans are for one terminal per location per month; if a merchant has multiple terminals in one or more locations, every mobile terminal equipped with a SIM card requires its own monthly data plan. For example, a merchant with two mobile terminals at each of their three locations would require 6 SIM cards with corresponding data plans.
   
2. If a merchant has multiple terminals, they can choose to have dedicated mobile terminals equipped with a mobile SIM card, while other terminals connect using Wi-Fi.
   
3. A mobile data plan is mandatory when using a terminal for delivery / Pay At The Door (PATD).
   
4. When using a terminal for Pay At The Table (PATT), a mobile data plan is not necessary if the merchant has a reliable Wi-Fi network with no “dead zones”.
   
5. If a merchant’s Wi-Fi network has weak coverage/reception in certain areas, a mobile data plan is recommended, as it offers network redundancy which mitigates the possibility of communication problems with the Point Of Sale (POS) system.
   
6. Using the terminal in standalone mode means that the operator is keying in the total amount as there is no communication with a POS system.
   
7. The different mobile data usage estimates include the data required for general terminal management and monthly software updates.
   

Terminal Used in Standalone Mode

When using the terminal in standalone mode, the only communication is the exchange of information between the terminal and the authorisation host. There is no additional communication between the terminal and a POS system.

Terminal Used with POS Systems

The following sections outline the data usage for a terminal that receives bill information from a POS system. When considering data usage for a terminal that communicates with a POS system, PATT can require additional communication to manage bills (such as splitting or combining bills), which consumes additional data, while a PATD bill is unlikely to require these additional data exchanges.

IMPORTANT: If a merchant uses a mobile terminal for both PATD and PATT sales, the merchant should select the data plan associated to PATT to avoid possible data overages.

Terminal Used in ECR Mode with 3rd Party POS System

When using the terminal with a third-party POS system, the communication between the terminal and the POS system generally uses the SecureTable application. If your POS system does not communicate with the terminal using the SecureTable application, the data usage may be slightly lower, but not significantly.

Terminal Used in a Maitre’D Environment

When using the terminal in a Maitre’D environment, the communication between the terminal and the POS system consists primarily of table and check numbers managed by the SecureTable application. 

Terminal Used in a Veloce Environment

When using the terminal in a Veloce environment, the communication between the terminal and the POS system is managed by the VelPay application. There are numerous additional communications exchanged between the terminal and the POS system when processing table (PATT) orders, including taking and changing orders, adjusting invoices, and more. These additional communications provide bill management flexibility but consume considerably more data. PATD orders are not subject to change at the time of delivery, therefore the mobile data usage is lower than PATT.

NOTE: Due to the additional data exchanged between the Veloce POS and the mobile terminal, the number of monthly transactions is harder to estimate accurately, and the values for number of monthly transactions in the following table should be considered as guidelines based on terminal usage.