thread Re: Contactless Reader Bluetooth drop out in Payments Troubleshooting

Contactless Reader Bluetooth drop out

GrahamB — Sun, 21 Sep 2025 10:22:26 GMT

I have been using Square Contactless payments for more than two years now. It is paired to my Samsung Galaxy S6 phone.

One frustration is its inability to maintain a continuous bluetooth connection. I regularlly find two issues:

1) While the app on my phone says "Reader ready" when I press "Charge $xx.xx" the green light does not come on on the reader until after a delay of around 15 seconds.

2) Sometimes the app says "Press button reader to connect..." and this can be as little as 2 or 3 seconds after I have just succesfully processed a Contactless payment. Then maybe 5 seconds later without doing anything it says "Reader ready".

Square help says perhaps Reader is too far from the phone etc but thay are kept in the same jeans pocket so that is not the issue!

I really love the Contactless payments reader but the flaky bluetooth connection is very frustrating. My phone seems to have no problem maintaining a solid bluetooth connection with other devices but I do ensure no other devices are nearby when I am using the Contactless Reader.

Anyone else have similar issues? Any best practices for phone settings etc that might help?

Thanks in advance, Graham

Re: Contactless Reader Bluetooth drop out

Seamus — Thu, 01 Nov 2018 00:32:06 GMT

Hey @GrahamB,

Thanks for getting in touch and sorry to hear you're having trouble using Square on Android.

Without looking into your specific account and operating environment, what you're describing is something we occasionally see on Android devices and can be due to a number of things, such as the version of Android you're using, whether you've been regularly updating the app, the speed of the internet connection, your device storage space, other bluetooth devices interfering etc.

While I don't have a clear answer for you as to why Square is running slowly on your S6, I do recommend getting in touch with our support team on 1800 760 137 - they'll be able to look a little further into your operating environment and provide more specific advice based on that 👍

Re: Contactless Reader Bluetooth drop out

GrahamB — Thu, 01 Nov 2018 01:12:28 GMT

I would not say either the app or my Square reader runs slowly but spasmodically it does not work immediately. Usually the green light come on instantly when I press "Charge $xx.xx" bu sometimes it takes several seconds.

Or sometimes it comes up with "Press the button on your Square Reader... " right in the middle of a transaction.

It is very frustrating. Some Android technical people have said the issue is the Square app as it needs to send a regular call to the Reader to maintain a live connection. I have no idea if that is correct.

But it is frustrating enough that I would gladly trial an alternative to Square if a competitor was to offer one.

Have tried multiple Square Readers but the issue remains.

FYI my Android phone is fully up to date with Android 7.0 and my Square reader is also current. I wish there was a way for me to show you the problem in a more meaningful way...

Regards, Graham

Re: Contactless Reader Bluetooth drop out

Koffeez — Tue, 06 Nov 2018 11:00:28 GMT

We constantly face the same issues and sometimes lose reader connection completely with only option to forget the reader and re-pair it. All this while a customer is waiting is a huge issue .

if the stability does not improve we will need to seek an alternative POS

we even have bought multiple readers and have them ready on other devices so that if we loose 1 connection we can quickly charge on another.

have just setup an iPad so will see if it is more stable.

Hope square takes this issue seriously.

Re: Contactless Reader Bluetooth drop out

Seamus — Wed, 07 Nov 2018 00:13:51 GMT

Hey @Koffeez,

Sorry to hear the trouble you're having staying connected with Square. If you've been using Android devices, first thing to check is that they're listed as tested and compatible with Square.

If you do have an iPad up and running, please let us know if you're seeing the same issues.