PF Kiosk - Introduction & Overview

11 Jan 2021: We are excited to have our brand new Photo Finale Kiosk software release ready to roll out. This is a huge release and a bit different than a normal kiosk update, so much so that instead of APM Kiosk, we are calling it PF Kiosk and version 1.0. PF Kiosk 1.0 is a fresh start for a new year on a platform that will allow us to develop both kiosk and web quicker and more efficiently. In the end, this means easier setup and maintenance for you, more innovative features for your customers to enjoy, and a more seamless presentation to help your brand shine.

PF Kiosk Highlights

• Responsive UI. The old APM software was restricted to what is now considered a pretty small screen, but PF Kiosk uses the full screen, no matter what size you have.
• Cloud order archives & account management. One huge benefit of the new kiosk is for your staff's ability to help customers. Now all the kiosk orders will be saved and accessible through myLab, just like your online orders are. This means you can reprint easily, find past orders, etc. The metadata for orders can be located in myLab at any time. Photos from orders are kept for 62 days. In the case of a member, the uncropped original photo will still be available indefinitely in most cases -- assuming the customer hasn't deleted it, or their account hasn't be deleted for inactivity.
• Central catalog control. This means that online products and pricing will be pulled through to the kiosk. This is similar to how PF@Kiosk works now. This means central control across your fleet and less setup and hassle for you.
• Central benefit control. Promos, coupons, membership benefits, and prepaid plans you have set up online will now work on kiosk.
• EasyLink Mobile Upload. If you have tried this out on your website uploader, you will be happy to know that we have added the functionality to the new kiosk as well. Users can now easily get photos from a phone into the kiosk by scanning a QR code or clicking a text message link. (The User Enhancements bundle subscription is required for the SMS service; without, users will see only the QR code option.) It's quick and doesn't require entering a code or downloading anything.
• Built on Chromium. With a platform based on the same engine used by the Chrome browser, we have a stronger, more flexible, and more secure position to take advantages of the latest web technologies.

What's needed before you install PF Kiosk

1. Windows computer. Please review the hardware specs here: Hardware and Network Requirements
2. Internet access. Your kiosk computer needs to have internet access to install and to run the new PF Kiosk software.
3. New or currently-supported kiosk license. The new PF Kiosk software is only available to supported kiosks. If you are out of a support contract, you will need to renew before you can install the new software.
4. PF Web catalog. The new PF Kiosk relies on a corresponding PF website catalog for products, pricing, memberships, and many other settings. If you are one of our kiosk-only customers, we will set you up with a PF Standard website and corresponding catalog. If you do not want a consumer-facing website, we can discourage search engines from crawling it, and you will pay no additional cost. However, this is a great opportunity for you to expand your business online and we encourage you to use the website as an order-taking tool, even if you offer store pickup only–this has been a very popular way, especially recently, to keep your customers ordering from you even while they may not be able to visit your store.
5. Print 50. We recommend to have our Print 50 software on a separate computer.
6. Keyboard & mouse. This is recommended. PF Kiosk does have an on-screen keyboard and is designed to work on a touch screen, however, a physical keyboard and mouse makes for a much more pleasant user experience.

Contact info

• Technical: If you have technical questions, our support ticket system is the quickest method: support@photofinale.com
• Sales: For support contract, renewal, licensing, Print 50 or PF Web purchase questions, please contact your sales rep directly, or email our general sales inbox: sales@photofinale.com