Magnetic Stripe

Plastic and paper cards can include a strip of magnetic tape material (much like that used in VCR or music cassette tapes) that can be "programmed" with important information (such as membership number, expiration date, security data, etc.). The unique data stored on the magnetic stripe provides the link to the electronic processing equipment of your stored value, credit card, or points based program - i.e. your point of sale machine.

There are a number of options to consider for your magnetic stripe. Spectrum Card can offer the following magnetic stripe solutions:

* Hi Coercivity (HiCo) and Low Coercivity (LoCo)
* Varying widths (from 0.25" - 0.50")
* Multiple colors - black, silver, gold, red, blue, and green

The coercivity of the stripe refers to the strength of the magnetic field required to "write" data to the card. The stronger the coercivity, the better chance you have of the stripe retaining its data over time. Temporary or short-term use cards (i.e. under a year) can probably suffice with the LoCo stripe.

The magnetic stripe can include up to 3 "tracks" on which different pieces of data can be stored. Spectrum Card can pre-program your magnetic stripe for you prior to shipping, or you can write to the stripe yourself with a special, inexpensive magnetic stripe writer.

 

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