HW is mostly an electronic payment terminal (POS) equipped by corresponding SW (especially financial application – generally affected by acquirer). HW type is affected by the needs of merchants, the most common are standalone terminals (communicating through dial-up or Ethernet), ev. terminals with limited mobile communication (e. g. in restaurants – BT communication through fixed base) or completely mobile terminals using GPRS communication. Terminals can also be coupled with pin-pad, ev. fixed in self-service kiosks (e. g. for usage at petrol stations with 24/7 operation, vendor machines, public transportation, entrance turnstiles etc.)
Independent special SW is used e. g. in case of internet acceptations (e-commerce), for PC/NTB/cell phones or other devices.