guide
What is an offline POS, and why it matters in Lebanon
An offline POS is a point-of-sale system that keeps ringing up sales when the internet or power drops, saves them on the device, and syncs automatically when the connection returns. In Lebanon, that’s the difference between selling and standing still.
Why it matters here
Power cuts and patchy internet are part of the working day. A POS that needs a live connection for every sale stops the moment the connection does — the queue grows, customers walk, and you fall back to a paper pad you’ll have to re-enter later. An offline-ready POS keeps the shop moving.
What “offline” should actually mean
“Works offline” can mean very different things. Look for a POS that:
- Completes real sales offline — not just shows a catalog, but takes payment and prints a receipt.
- Saves every sale to the device durably so a restart doesn’t lose anything.
- Syncs automatically when you’re back online — no manual export/import.
- Validates at sync time (stock, customer) so offline sales don’t double-count or oversell.
- Handles one bad sale gracefully without blocking the rest of the queue.
What to ask a vendor
- If the internet dies mid-sale, what happens?
- Where are offline sales stored, and do they survive a device restart?
- How do they reconcile when the connection returns?
- What happens if two tills sell the last item while offline?
How ARC does it
ARC’s point of sale is offline-ready: it keeps selling without a connection, saves every sale to the device, and syncs automatically when you’re back online — checking stock and customers at sync time so nothing is lost or double-counted. Read what ARC is or see how it compares to the old way.