Older reader not connecting

[YeahAlright]

Received a second hand, older style reader from a group (chip and magstripe only).

I've set up my account and tried to connect to my Samsung S8 via the headphone jack, but the app says it's taking too long. Are older Readers supported? Or does it remain linked to the first user's account?

[Seamus]

Hey @YeahAlright,

Thanks for reaching out.

In theory these readers can still operate with Square, though in practice not a lot of them do any more due to the readers having small lithium ion batteries with limited recharge life-cycles. Because we've not sold them new in Australia for a number of years, the chip/swipe readers you'll find are quite old and may not work due to the batteries no longer holding charge.

One thing you can try is spinning the reader in the socket to make room to plug in the charging cable while it's also plugged into the headphone jack. It's a tight fit but should be doable! If having it plugged in with the charging cable boots it into action, it's an indication that the battery is probably dead.

Your best bet is to get hold of the newer Contactless + Chip reader, or use the plug in chip reader while it's powered by an external source (which may not be super convenient!).