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Finally got this coin in my hands- What sets it apart for me is the very fine beehive/chainlink pattern behind Satoshi. I don't think I've seen a similar effect on physical bitcoin before. The face of the statue is also mirrored, like the real statue, while the rest is matte. there is also an extremely fine, small text "BITCOIN 2024 HALVING" on the bottom left which appears laser etched - I have not seen such small, fine text on the metal of any physical bitcoin. the backside appears standard, with the hologram appropriately branded and numbered. The case itself is tasteful, better than a mere airtite in my opinion yet easy to open if desired (there is a notch, its not 'sealed' so it can be opened without breaking it). Overall, I also like that he face of the coin has no branding and is fully dedicated to the art, symbolism, and message, with the brand "signature" being on the back with a hologram. Having no set denomination is a small departure from tradition though appropriate for self-funded, and overall I see this as an excellently made physical bitcoin that commemorates a worthy subject with a unique angle.
Now some personal notes:
I have been aware of this coin project for a long time, and did provide some feedback on the design. I know the creator personally, and can say that he is extremely passionate about this project and has poured much personal energy and resources into making this reality. I also visited Sunshine Mint in Las Vegas last year, where he and his son had an office from which they were working.
Luckily, one of the mint managers took me on a personal tour of the floor, letting me see pallets upon pallets (I estimated 50m worth) of 1,000 oz silver bullion bars. Seeing the various machines, and workers manning them pump out coins and bars, including for the royal Canadian Mint, was very cool. they also had a special room where they cut the dies, some of which took 36h+ to prepare. There was also a central safe in the middle, in which the dies for various coins were held. They explained how all the garbage the building is checked with metal detectors, and security was very tight as well - there's almost no way I could have removed a single ounce from the building.
