Why You May Want To Wait Before Getting An iPad To Take Payments At Merchandise Table

Thinking about using an iPhone or iPad to process credit card payments at your merchandise table? After all, Intuit and others have created very affordable systems and are even giving away the card scanner that powers them. But you may want to wait a few months before investing hundred of dollars in an iPad or iPhone.

Some time later this year, Apple is reportedly planning to add a “near-field communication” payment system to the next generation of iPhones and iPads, and it could revolutionize the merch table yet again. 

Using Apple’s new service, fans with new iPhones and iPads will be able to beam credit-card numbers, iTunes gift-card balances or bank info from a distance of up to 4 inches, making purchases even faster.  You'll still want to add the scanner for non-iPhone and iPad 2 users, but the line at the merch table appears about to get a whole lot faster.