iPad POS Setup

The Levy iPad POS is a progressive web app (PWA) that runs in Safari on iPadOS 17 or newer. It pairs to your subaccount with a 6-digit PIN, connects to a Stripe Terminal card reader, and gives counter staff a kiosk-style interface for walk-in rentals, pickups, returns, and extensions.

This guide covers the one-time setup. For day-to-day register operation, see iPad POS Workflow.

What you need

• An iPad running iPadOS 17 or newer. The 10th-generation iPad (Wi-Fi, 64 GB) is the recommended model.
• A Wi-Fi network the iPad and the card reader can both reach. (Stripe Terminal also works over Bluetooth, but Wi-Fi is more reliable for high-volume shops.)
• A Levy operator account with at least Manager role on the subaccount.
• One of:
  • A BBPOS WisePOS E card reader (Stripe sells these for around $349), or
  • An iPhone running iOS 16.4 or newer to use Tap to Pay on iPhone with no extra hardware (US, UK, and Canada only at this time).

Optional but recommended:

• A Heckler Design or similar lockable iPad stand to mount the iPad on the counter.
• A Star TSP143IIIBT Bluetooth thermal receipt printer (around $279).
• A Star CD3-1616 cash drawer (RJ-11 cable to printer; printer kicks the drawer open on receipt print).

Step 1: Open the POS pairing page

On any computer or phone, sign into your Levy operator dashboard and navigate to:

Dashboard > Bookings > POS

You will see a list of any previously paired POS devices and a Generate pairing PIN button.

Click Generate pairing PIN. A 6-digit code appears on screen (e.g. 482917). The PIN is valid for 10 minutes.

Step 2: Open the POS on the iPad

On the iPad, open Safari and navigate to:

https://fleets.levyelectric.com/pos

You see a pairing screen asking for the 6-digit PIN.

Enter the PIN from Step 1 and tap Pair.

The iPad swaps the PIN for a long-lived bearer token (stored in localStorage) and you land on the POS console. The console shows your subaccount name, the shop name, and six big tap targets (New Walk-In, Pickup Queue, Return, Today's Reservations, Extend, Gift Cards).

Step 3: Install the POS as a Home Screen app

To run the POS in full-screen kiosk mode without the Safari address bar:

1. In Safari on the iPad, with the POS open, tap the Share button.
2. Tap Add to Home Screen.
3. Name it "Levy POS" and tap Add.
4. Open the new Home Screen icon — it opens full-screen, no Safari chrome.

The PWA's service worker caches the shell so the app opens instantly even on a slow Wi-Fi connection, and the POS API queues requests if the connection drops mid-transaction.

Step 4: Connect a Stripe Terminal reader (BBPOS WisePOS E)

1. Plug in the BBPOS reader and wait for it to boot to the Stripe logo.
2. On the BBPOS, swipe right twice to open Settings, then Network > Wi-Fi, and join the same Wi-Fi network as the iPad.
3. On the iPad POS, tap Settings > Card Reader > Discover readers.
4. The reader's serial number appears in the list. Tap it.
5. The reader displays a 4-digit code. Confirm it matches what the iPad shows, then tap Pair.

Once paired, the reader appears as Connected in the POS header. On every checkout, the "Tap card" button is enabled.

A connection token is minted on the server (per-subaccount Stripe connected account) every time the iPad reconnects to the reader — the iPad never sees long-lived Stripe credentials.

Step 5 (alternative): Tap to Pay on iPhone

If you do not want to buy a card reader, you can use Tap to Pay on iPhone instead. Available on iPhone XS or newer running iOS 16.4 or newer (US, UK, and Canada).

1. On the iPhone you will use, sign into Levy Fleets in Safari at fleets.levyelectric.com/pos.
2. Pair the iPhone using the same 6-digit PIN flow as Step 2.
3. On checkout, tap Use Tap to Pay. The first time you do this, iOS prompts you to accept Stripe's Tap to Pay terms and confirm the merchant.
4. Hold the customer's card or phone to the top edge of your iPhone. The transaction completes in 1-2 seconds.

Tap to Pay supports all the same payment methods as the BBPOS reader (Visa, Mastercard, Amex, Discover, Apple Pay, Google Pay).

Step 6: Receipt printing (optional)

The current POS supports two ways to deliver a receipt:

1. Email receipt — toggle on the success screen. The customer enters their email and Stripe sends a branded receipt within seconds.
2. Print receipt — pairs a Star TSP143IIIBT or Epson TM-m30 over Bluetooth (configurable from Settings > Receipt Printer).

To pair a Star TSP143IIIBT:

1. Power the printer on. Hold the Feed button for 5 seconds — the printer prints a configuration sheet with its Bluetooth pairing name.
2. On the iPad, open Settings > Bluetooth and pair with that name (no PIN needed for most Star models).
3. In the POS, open Settings > Receipt Printer and tap Connect to Star TSP143. The POS verifies by printing a test page.

If your cash drawer is connected to the printer's RJ-11 port, the drawer kicks open automatically on every print. You can toggle this in Settings > Receipt Printer > Open cash drawer on print.

Step 7: Configure default pickup location

If your subaccount has multiple pickup locations, set the default for this iPad:

Settings > Pickup Location > Front Beach Shop

This pre-selects that location on every new walk-in and filters the pickup queue to only show reservations at that location. Helpful if you have two iPads at two physical shops.

Step 8: Lock the iPad to kiosk mode (optional)

For a counter device used by multiple staff, you can use Guided Access to lock the iPad into just the POS app:

1. On the iPad, open Settings > Accessibility > Guided Access and turn it on. Set a passcode.
2. Open the Levy POS Home Screen app.
3. Triple-press the side button. Tap Start.

The iPad is now locked to the POS until someone triple-presses and enters the passcode. Customers cannot accidentally exit the POS, and staff cannot browse Instagram between rentals.

Multiple iPads

You can pair as many iPads as you want — every one with its own PIN. Each iPad's bearer token shows up in Dashboard > Bookings > POS with the last-seen timestamp, IP address, and an Unpair button.

Two iPads at the same shop both see the same pickup queue, the same reservations, and the same card reader (if Wi-Fi paired). Two iPads at two different shops can each have their own default pickup location.

Troubleshooting setup

• PIN expired. PINs are valid for 10 minutes. Generate a new one from the dashboard.
• "Card reader not found." Make sure the reader is on the same Wi-Fi as the iPad. The BBPOS reader takes 30-60 seconds to advertise after boot.
• Tap to Pay terms keep appearing. Apple shows the terms once per merchant. Accept them once and they persist for that iPhone.
• PWA opens in Safari instead of full-screen. You added the wrong icon. Delete it and re-add via the Share button → Add to Home Screen.
• Bearer token lost (cleared Safari data). Re-pair the iPad with a new PIN. The old token becomes inactive.

Related guides

• iPad POS Workflow
• Overview
• Troubleshooting