Obsessed with Perfection - The Making of Toss Front 2

Toss Place completely redesigned its 2nd-generation payment terminal based on 2 years of field observation after launching the 1st-generation Front. Centered on user experience, they solved three core problems.

NFC Placement: Between Signal and Aesthetics

Wanting to avoid an oversized device, Toss reviewed multiple design options.

• Moving to the top of the card reader: A futuristic look, but uncomfortable card insertion angle
• Expanding the top area: Visual instability on the vertical display, plus camera positioning issues
• Camera centered + NFC around it: Recognition rate dropped sharply due to radio interference

Final solution: Changed the back of the display from metal to plastic. NFC signals could pass through, and the structural stability of the front tempered glass minimized the mass production process.

Card Reader Replaceability

In the 1st generation, if the card reader broke down, the entire device had to be repaired, taking more than a week and halting merchant operations. The 2nd generation adopted a C-type docking method, making it easy for anyone to replace.

The Final Challenge of Reader Removal

After the C-type connection, a new problem emerged: a protruding structure for removal could be accidentally detached, or its removed state might not be recognized, leading to payment failures. Buttons or levers made the exterior look complicated.

Toss completely redesigned the internal structure—tilting the circuit from horizontal to upward-angled placement, re-sourcing the cable terminal as a reversed component, and completing a structure where it's inserted from the front and pushed out from the back. As a side effect, assembly also became simpler.

Perfection Comes from Questions

The key was not finding an answer that technically "works," but finding the answer that is "right" from the user's standard. One must keep asking the question, "Isn't there a better answer?" to the very end.

Front 2 exceeded 1st-generation sales figures immediately after launch, and complaints to customer service turned into positive responses.