Hub for Square Stand

[Ron]

Did anyone have trouble today with their contactless chip reader connected to the Square Stand? I have a brand new reader and today it started acting up again just like the old one did. It would loose connection and then re-connect only to disconnect again and again. All other things connected to the hub ( receipt printer and cash drawer ) were fine.

[Sean]

Sorry to hear about the trouble! Have you already had a chance to try out these steps? 

It's also possible that there could be an issue with the dock for your Square Reader. Has it ever been exchanged before?

[Ron]

Hi Sean, yes I tried all the trouble shooting steps and none has corrected the problem. I have not exchanged my "dock" yet, could that be the problem?

[Kelly · Accepted solution]

Hi Ron - I'm stepping in for Sean. That could be it, you can start that exchange process here.

[ColonelMustard]

Hi Kelly -

I'm having a similar problem: 

- my kitchen printer, which is connected by a 30 foot USB cable, started "disconnecting" a few weeks ago.  This is quasi-random, but easily fixed by disconnecting and re-connecting the cable at either end. 

- last week my contactless reader started showing the same symptoms, and responds similarly to the kitchen printer: it loses connection and re-connects if the cable is removed and then re-connected to the hub.

I have ALREADY contacted Square support. I have ALREADY requested and received a replacement power supply/hub, which exhibited the same (or possibly worse) performance. So I re-installed my old hub. 

It was also suggested to connect the Kitchen Printer to an Ethernet router, which may work, but doesn't really resolve the problem, since one of the peripherals having issues is ALSO a Square product.  I think a redesign (and free upgrade) should be in the works...

[AshleyK]

@ColonelMustard I appreciate your time in dealing with this and I'm sorry to hear you're still having trouble with your hardware even after the hub replacement. It may be time to get a new 30ft USB cable to see if that works. Also, connecting your Contactless and Chip Reader over Bluetooth may be a good option to see if that helps connectivity. 

[ColonelMustard]

Hi AshleyK - Thanks for the hints. 

I have already replaced the USB cable (that was the OBVIOUS fix, which unfortunately failed to show any improvement). If I MUST, I will run an ethernet cable to my router, but that's a bunch of work that I was hoping to avoid (the router is in a completely different room and I'd have to go up through the suspended ceiling).

I might try connecting the reader by Bluetooth to the iPad, but it will still need to be POWERED by the USB hub, right?

I'm baffled...

[AshleyK]

@ColonelMustard if you try to connect the Contactless and Chip Reader with Bluetooth you will not need to power the reader with the Dock, but you will need to charge it at the end of the night either via the dock or another power source. If you use the Dock while it's connected to the Stand it will override the Bluetooth connection and pair it via USB/Dock again. 

If everything is working separately, I am wondering if the Stand itself needs to be upgraded.

[ColonelMustard]

Hi AshleyK -

Thanks for the heads-up.

That would also make the reader "portable" right?

Sometimes, with COVID, I need to go out and take a credit card from a car and it would be great to run it right there. Is that possible with just the reader and the app on a smartphone?

I *did* get the older Stand (because you were out of stock of the new one when we opened), but that should still work, right?  Is there a firmware/software update I should know about?  The disconnects started happening about 1 month ago and seem to be getting worse.

[AshleyK]

Yes, if you connect the reader through Bluetooth you will be able to go out to cars and accept the credit card. You will need to take the tablet with you, though, as the Bluetooth connection likely won't go that far. 

Also, there is no firmware update for the older stand, but I do think that it will not work as well as the newer one over time, which is what it sounds like you're experiencing. If you've had the Stand less than a year you can look into getting a warranty for it from Support.

[ColonelMustard]

I'll give the warranty a shot, We've only had it since June. 

These issues are very frustrating.  I often need to ask the kitchen if the ticket printed, instead of KNOWING that it did... Due to COVID, we did have to move the POS to the front of the restaurant, which moves it further from the kitchen and possibly exacerbates the problem.