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Credit cards are used everywhere. From buying a gummy caterpillar gift basket to paying for 500 furrbies on ebay, they can be used for almost anything. Except one thing. This may have been implemented in other areas, but in the southeast I can't buy a dang Choco-Taco if I don't have a one dollar bill
on me. Many times I find myself in front of the ice cream machine at work, just waiting for my Choco-Fix. But I can't get it. "Why can't they make this easy on me?", I say to myself. "I have $50 in my pocket and this only costs a dollar." Then I sulk away, disappointed. End this heart ache. Put credit card payment methods in vending machines!
Small Credit Scanner
http://www.commstarinc.com/ezr1.htm
Like this but integrated. [cahill, Dec 09 2004]
done
http://www.oxin.co....wsitem.php?newsid=5
I think this is done. [neilp, Dec 10 2004]
Just one of many credit card accepting vending machines
http://www.ark21.com/vic/
Also takes ATM cards, cash, your first born, etc. [bristolz, Dec 10 2004]
Octopus Card
http://www.octopusc...ng/whatis/index.jsp
As mentioned by ian_mackereth. One of the more wonderful inventions in the world today. The card, that is. Not ian_mackereth. Although I'm sure that he's nice too. [DrBob, Dec 10 2004]
[link]
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Oh....I thought I was going to be able to drop a fifty in a machine, and get out an anonymous card with forty-five dollars of credit on it. |
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The merchant fees that Visa and Mastercard charge may well eat any of the small profit that vending machine businesses make. |
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What in god's name is a Choco-Taco? It sound HORRIBLE! |
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Choco-Tacos are an ice cream
treat made from a waffle cone
shell, and filled with ice cream and
chocolate. They're alright, but
something about their production
or the sitting around makes the
waffle cone invariably mushy. You
can get them at Taco Bell and
some gas stations. |
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In Japan, it's nice--you can stick a
¥1000 ($10) bill in vending
machines, and they aren't nearly
so picky about the shape the
money has to be in. |
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Maybe a decent alternative would
be some kind of gift card that you
could buy (from a vending
machine of course!) that would
just work as a debit card in other
vending machines. Put $100 on it
and use it til it's spent. |
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I enjoy the swishy-waffle consistency of my Choco-Taco's. In fact, I've managed to keep the position of the Choco-Taco in our work vending machine a secret for months. I'm not particularly popular for it but it pays for itself in Choco-Taclatey goodness. |
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Not quite the same, but some Coke vending machines in Australia allow you to charge the drink to your mobile phone account.
Many shops and vending machines in Hong Kong also use the Octopus card (a contactless smartcard) that the rail system uses for fares. |
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I'm pretty sure this is baked (although credit cards require the terminal to be online, which is the other reason it's not too popular). |
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'fraid this is well and truely baked as other 'bakers have pointed out. |
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The biggest issues with this are : online connections required to validate card, payment of the merchant costs and the internal gubbins required to read the card. |
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My company has yet to go down this route for many of these reasons. |
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Your best chance to see this is on campuses. I returned to my old college to take a class, and every vending machine was wired to accept a student ID, which functioned as an ATM card. |
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In response to bristolz' link, my idea was for ALL vending machines to have this capability; specifically speaking, vending machines containing Choco-Tacos. Very specifically speaking, the vending machine at my work (which contains Choco-Tacos). |
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You could add this ability cheaply using cell phone-like technology for each machine's connection so a hardline is not required. |
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You're so passive about vending machines. Tell the thing to find the best warehouse deal on the continent by tomorrow noon for yor Choc-product or you'll plug it into 220 volts in lieu of 110. |
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I like this idea. The first place for this to be used by the vending business might be on the change making machines. That way you could get change for the other vending machines with your credit/debit card. I think this will be common in the future |
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[World] I can't leave this subject alone. There are school nutritional handbooks sprouting up everwhere banning junk food from vending machines and that would include everything that comes out of a vending machine in most cases. |
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Why would a business, considering installing vending machines, feed it's valued employees with junk? |
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[World], you're caught between a vegetable cutting knife and a hard place regarding nutrition. Or ROBO FOOD. |
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(whispers) [mens], [World]'s not here. You have to let him go... |
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The way this is done: vending machine has a phone number on it, which you dial from your cell phone. Following the voice menu, you press appropriate phone buttons to select the item you want. The machine then dispenses your item and charges your cell bill. |
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I read about these being popular in Finland five years ago or so. |
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//five years ago or so.// Your a poet and you didn't even know it! |
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