Executives panel: handheld POS adoption closer than ever

Nation's Restaurant News, Nov 28, 2005 by Ron Ruggless

GRAPEVINE, TEXAS -- The freedom of handheld point-of-sale devices and their continued slide in cost make them a likely popular piece of restaurant equipment in the next few years, according to technology company executives.

Self-ordering via cell phone or personal digital assistant and loyalty programs also were among topics addressed by the "Executives Panel" staged Nov. 8 during the 10th Annual International Foodservice Technology Exposition. The conference, also known as FS/TEC, is managed and produced by Nation's Restaurant News with Robert Grimes of Accuvia and was held at the Gaylord Texan Resort here.

Grimes moderated the session, which included: Paul Armstrong, executive vice president of eBusiness Solutions for MICROS Systems Inc.; Andy Heyman, president of the hospitality division of Aloha by Radiant Systems; and Janet Kennedy, managing director of the retail and hospitality units for Microsoft Corp.

Also on the panel were Jerry Leeman, worldwide foodservice segment manager for IBM Retail Store Solutions; Alan Liddle, editor at large for special projects and technology at Nation's Restaurant News; Karen Sammon, vice president for software development for ParTech Inc.; and Bud Weist, vice president of sales and marketing of the system-device group of Epson America Inc.

Handheld POS, which has been discussed at the event for years, is now on the cusp of becoming widely used, panelists said.

Armstrong said MICROS has been selling handheld POS devices for about a decade. He said his company conducted a study about 15 years ago that suggested operators wanted a rugged handheld "that could be dropped onto concrete from four feet, that is easy to use and has a price point of somewhere between $500 and $900."

"We're still at the point where the price point is coming down," Armstrong said. He explained that handhelds are finding use in the "sports-arena environment where the people sitting in the premium seats can order; beach bars; lobby bars and those kinds of environments." He added: "We are seeing some success in restaurants."

More software applications are running on handhelds, said IBM's Leeman, citing the Asian market as one with early adopters. He mentioned an Asian noodle shop that for about five years has used handhelds running on the Linux platform.

"The handheld device allows them [to add to an order] different noodles, different flavors and different vegetables in different combinations to come up with exactly what the customer wants," Leeman said of why the portable POS terminals found their way into the noodle restaurant, which offers 9,000 different combinations of ingredients.

On the cost, Leeman said, "we're still struggling to get [an acceptable] price point."

Bud Weist of Epson America Inc. said: "In this last year or so, I've seen more applications for handhelds and wireless. We've also developed a wireless printer to complement the handhelds." He indicated that widespread adoption of such technology hinges on lowering the total cost of ownership, or TCO, which "we have been seeing come down year after year."

"We are shipping hundreds of these [handhelds] every year now, and the applications, in terms of their use in bars and for line busting at quick-service [restaurants], clearly have benefits" when the devices are "used properly," said Heyman of Aloha by Radiant Systems.

"Two things that I think are interesting are, one, as you take an application that is traditionally touch-screen and put it on a handheld, it can often slow down rather than speed up operations," he said. "Getting the right form factor is in conflict with most of the handheld providers.

"The second thing is, standards--and we are a big believer in open standards--actually work against you in a wireless environment. There are a couple of proprietary devices out there to keep interference from other wireless devices minimized," Heyman said.

The future may be in allowing customers to use their own mobile phones and palm computers to place food and drink orders and settle bills, said Kennedy of Microsoft. For restaurant information officers and executives, she said, "the dream would be to off-load the cost of that [order-taking and settlement technology] onto the consumer."

"We're seeing that [transfer] happen outside the United States first," Kennedy continued. "So if you go to Asia today, people are using their smart phones as payment devices. It's very widely adopted. Many foodservice operators are coming to [Microsoft headquarters] to try to brainstorm about how to integrate the devices that consumers carry into their operations."

Leeman concurred that consumers abroad are using cell phones for payments and said, "I think that's going to come here." He added: "Why would you stand in a McDonald's and wait for someone to come up to you with a hand-held device to take your order when you could stand back and present your order [wirelessly from your own computer device]?"

"I think the paradigm shift here will come when customers bring their [order] devices," Leeman said.