You are currently here: 
English (US) > Cash
Register Central > Cash Register ABCs - Selection Criteria, Displays,
& Printers
Cash registers are machines that keep track of daily income, distribute change, and temporarily store currency. Moreover, they assist shop owners in managing their retail operations. Product pre-sets and other quick-key functions make transactions fast and efficient. All registers come with a removable, locking cash drawer, memory back-up protection, and the ability of automatic tax computation. They are excellent machines for both stationary and mobile businesses (flower shops and merchandise shops, for example).
The number of items, clerks, and rate of inflows/outflows will determine
which cash register is most suitable for a particular operation. The higher-end
models have more reporting
features, programmable functions, as well as more sophisticated printing
and display capabilities.
To choose the right cash register, you will want to consider the following
features:
Most cash registers have a front display for the operator and a rear
display for the customer. Some rear displays can be adjusted and rotated
for convenient customer viewing. Higher-end models may have an alphanumeric
front display, where the top line is alphanumeric and the bottom line
is numeric only. The alphanumeric display shows item descriptions during
sales registration and alphanumeric prompts during the program mode. This
assists the user with installation or in the selection of menu options.
It is also common to use external pole displays for customers, because
the counter may block the built-in customer display in the ECR from view.
Printers come in single or two stations and are built-into the cash register.
Single-station printers only print out one paper tape that can be used
either as a journal record or a customer receipt. However, some single-station
printers print on two-ply paper providing both a receipt for the customer
and a merchant copy (journal tape) for record keeping. Two-station printers
can be found in more expensive models, where they provide a separate customer
receipt and journal tape. In addition, printers come in 2 varieties, dot
matrix and thermal. Dot matrix is required for 2-ply paper, whereas thermal
printers deliver high speed and silent service.
More advanced cash registers will support external printers as well. These
generally deliver high printing speeds, as the seperate housing can hold
larger printer mechanisms, which also require more power than the cash
register can supply. These printers should have an Easy-Load mechanism,
where you can just drop in the paper roll without having to fiddle with
it further, when reloading paper.
Continue on to types of cash register keyboards >
Find all the information you need right here to feel confident about QUORiON POS solutions and make an informed purchase.
Browse through our online catalog to find the cash register or POS system that best suits your needs today.
Check out all the great functions our software delivers to drive your success.
Discover what others have to say about our POS products. Read more.
