Mobile card machine, mobile card reader and mobile PDQ all describe the same category: a terminal that works away from a fixed counter. What differs between them is whether the device carries its own connection or borrows a phone's. Published prices run from 11 pounds plus VAT for a paired reader to 179 pounds excluding VAT for a ruggedised standalone.
Three names, one category
PDQ is British retail shorthand, reader usually implies a paired device, and machine usually implies a standalone. Suppliers mix all three freely, and no manufacturer sells a product called a PDQ. Read the specification rather than the noun, and look for whether the device has its own SIM.
What makes a good mobile card reader machine
Its own mobile data, a battery measured in transactions rather than standby hours, a screen readable in daylight, and a case that survives being dropped. Those four are what separate the 39 pound entry model from the 179 pound ruggedised one on published prices, and outdoors the difference is repaid quickly.
Rate considerations for mobile trades
Small average sales make the fixed pence element matter more than the percentage. Published fixed charges here run from 2p to 11p per transaction. A mobile trade doing many small sales should compare a typical basket in pence, while a trade doing a few large jobs should compare the percentage and the treatment of commercial cards.
Portable vs fixed card machines: when a countertop still wins
A countertop terminal is wired to power and network beside the till, so it never runs flat and never loses its connection while the counter is the only place you take money. A portable machine earns its place once you take payment at a table, a door or a roadside. Bank owned acquirers usually rent both, with Elavon printing 15 pounds a month for a desk terminal and 18 pounds for a mobile one, while app based providers sell portable hardware outright from 39 pounds excluding VAT. Choose on where the sale happens, not on the device.
Questions people ask about card machine mobile
What is the best mobile card machine in the UK?
For trades away from wifi, a standalone terminal with its own SIM and a full shift battery. Published prices for those start at 39 pounds excluding VAT and rise with ruggedness and printing.
Are mobile PDQ machines the same as mobile card machines?
Yes. PDQ is the older British word for a card terminal and suppliers use it interchangeably with card machine and card reader.
Does a mobile machine cost more per transaction?
No. Providers read here charge the same in-person rate whichever terminal is used, though a few price tap to pay on a phone separately.
Where can I find mobile PDQ machines to buy outright?
From most of the app based providers here: myPOS, Zettle, Tide, Elavon's entry plan and SumUp all print an outright hardware price. For a standalone machine with its own SIM, published prices start at 39 pounds excluding VAT and rise to 179 pounds for a ruggedised model.