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Mophie and Intuit release Complete Card Solution payment system for iPhone

by Mike Schramm Aug 26th 2010 at 7:00PM

Square has made quite a few headlines with its in-progress payment system for the iPhone, but here's that reader developed by Mophie (known for their battery pack add-ons) and serviced by Intuit. It's called the Complete Card Solution for iPhone, and it's costlier than Square's extremely low cost of entry where all you need to start taking payments is a free account, free app and free card reader. This one runs $179 from the get-go; there's also a $12.95 charge per month, on top of the per-payment fees that Intuit will take out. But Intuit's reader is a little more friendly for big sales teams (allowing for 50 users on one account), and the transaction charge runs only about 1.7 percent as compared to Square's 2.75 percent.

So if Intuit has a target, it's probably larger businesses -- Square's reader is much more ad-hoc and easier for the smaller companies and individuals to use. There is one other issue, however -- while Square's reader just plugs into the headphone jack (meaning it can be used by any iPhone, and even some other smartphones), Mophie's clearly fits all the way around the phone, which means it's currently available only for iPhone 3G and 3GS. Still, if you don't need one set up for the iPhone 4 right away, the Mophie reader is reportedly on Apple store shelves now.


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Square has made quite a few headlines with its in-progress payment system for the iPhone, but here's that reader developed by Mophie...
 

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tony

Useless for the ROW who use smartcards with chip and pin. When can we have a better, more secure solution?

August 27 2010 at 10:26 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
glenn

We're a small business that sells the majority of our products over the web. Once a year we go to a conference where we sell a significant amount of product in person. I've looked for the best solution, and for us, we've been using Swipe which ties into a PayPal account. I'd love something to swipe cards with, and have also been waiting for Square from day one... but the manual entry is still functional and saves us tons of follow-up work. It's $.99.

August 27 2010 at 10:01 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
jh

What good is Square if no one has a dongle they can use?

August 27 2010 at 8:27 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Hector

I prefer the e-nabler's emobilePOS version of the system. http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/emobilepos/id369570613?mt=8 You can do practically everything you can do in Quickbooks in the iphone or ipod touch. I can also charge credit cards, scan barcodes and print receipts. and its available now.

August 27 2010 at 8:21 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Chewie67

This is a HORRIBLE solution, and I really hope that most people avoid it.

It has a high upfront fee, a high monthly fee, and a high per-transaction fee. This it typical of Intuit -- as anyone who has used Quickbooks can tell you.

Square, on the other hand, has no upfront fee, no monthly fee, and lower per-transaction fees. They may not have the name recognition of Intuit and the Quicken / Quickbooks brands, but they're much more consumer friendly.

I'm sure it will be an uphill battle, but I really hope Square prevails in this battle...

August 26 2010 at 11:03 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
1 reply to Chewie67's comment
Chewie67

See this story from Engadget.

http://www.engadget.com/2010/08/26/mophie-and-intuit-partner-to-create-complete-card-solution-for-i/

"Likewise, per-transaction fees here are between $.30 and $.34, double the $.15 fee of the Square."

Square does have a slightly higher "discount rate", but the per transaction fee is half what Intuit is charging.


FYI, credit card companies usually charge 4 fees to every merchant:

1. A one-time setup fee. Intuit: $179. Square: $0.

2. A monthly fee. Intuit $12.95. Square: $0.

3. A per transaction fee. Intuit: $0.30 to $0.34. Square: $0.15

4. A per transaction percentage. Intuit: 1.7% to 3.7%. Square: 2.75% to 3.5%

August 27 2010 at 10:15 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
syclonefx

Yeah I would like to use Square, but they are moving really slow. I signed up for them months ago and still haven't been approved. I didn't really want to go to a paid solution.

August 26 2010 at 10:10 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
1 reply to syclonefx's comment
gtdavemac

I just got an email yesterday that my Square reader shipped. Been waiting since day 1 of iPhone release, so we'll see!

August 26 2010 at 10:21 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
kupua

What good is Square dongle, if you can't even buy one? Brandon, me too, signed up with them since day one and zip. Square heads up this is looking like a Failure

August 26 2010 at 9:04 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Marmaduke

.

August 26 2010 at 8:58 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Brandon

Square may be cheep but I signed up 6 months ago.... still nothing.

August 26 2010 at 8:32 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Zak

Now only if they can port Quicken over to the iOS... (but I suppose getting a properly working version on a Mac would be the first step..)

August 26 2010 at 8:11 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
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