A secure hardware wallet for Bitcoin ?

[Raj Sri]

HI there, my journey to find and buy a hardware wallet which works for me.At the moment I am located in the EU (Malta) which brings me to the issue of shipping cost and customs.Whilst I was able to find a reasonable price to shipping the customs remain. At this point I am thinking about buying a ColdCard,Power-Only USB Cable, Power-Only USB Cable. The price comes to a little bellow 250 $ without customs which vary , so I am not even sure about the end price. However , I was thinking through the whole process and I still am not sure if I really need to spend that much on a hyped-up calculator. The setup I have in mind is using software like Sparrow , Electrum or Specter for the air gap transaction signing.The idea is to keep the funds private key as cold as possible but also usable on monthly bases if needed. Now I would love to hear suggestions and recommendations from a smart community like one here.


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[jackg]

Unbranded tablets on amazon seem to sell for £50, you could probably find some from a shop that price (just make sure they run android) and then you can airgap with electrum without buying something more specific/expensive.

A lot of hardware wallets (like the trezor and ledger) do have signature verification built into them though, which makes them seem quite a bit more secure.

[TinaK]

This dude @Ratimov made a huge list of hardware wallets which has a list of prices, a number of cryptocurrencies supported and a review of the hardware wallets which I think will give a better idea about what hardware wallet you are looking for.

Find on this thread.
https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=5282364.0

The most common and affordable hardware wallet is the Trezor one that costs only €59. But for the small amount that you wanted to store maybe Electrum is enough of what you need, I would rather choose this compared to others that you have mentioned above.

[o_e_l_e_o]

The set up you have described will work fine, but if the cost is too much, I just put in some fake details on the Trezor website and it seems they offer free shipping to Malta. You can therefore pick up a Trezor One with all taxes and free sipping for 62 euro, or 74 euro if you want to pay for tracked and faster shipping.

Alternatively, if you have an old computer or laptop you are no longer using, you can turn it in to airgapped cold storage for free but with a bit of work.

[mk4]

Using an air-gapped device will suffice assuming you actually know how to create one in the correct way. There are lots of ways of your keys getting leaked if you do things wrongly.

As much as possible, I'd find a way to get a reputable hardware wallet. Though ColdCard isn't really the best when it terms for beginner-friendliness, the reviews are mostly positive if you're a bitcoin-only person. For most people I'd still recommend either Ledger or Trezor.

[Lucius]

The price comes to a little bellow 250 $ without customs which vary , so I am not even sure about the end price.

I don't know where the price of $250 came from, because as far as I can see, the price of the Mk3 version is around $129, and you also get another 5% discount if you pay with Bitcoin. I know shipping costs and customs + VAT can be quite expensive, but $250 is still a little too much for HW considering there are alternatives.

On the other hand, if someone for obvious reasons does not want to trust the most famous manufacturers, then even $250 is not too much.

[PX-Z]

Unbranded tablets on amazon seem to sell for £50, you could probably find some from a shop that price (just make sure they run android) and then you can airgap with electrum without buying something more specific/expensive.

I'll be more wary the security patch of these unbranded tablets if up to date.

I'll go buy trezor if the price is just little different.

Buying a $250 HW is insane, if the whole purpose is the same to a
those fully tested, secured and cheap one.

[tranthidung]

Using an air-gapped device will suffice assuming you actually know how to create one in the correct way. There are lots of ways of your keys getting leaked if you do things wrongly.

[Guide] Secure air-gapped crypto wallet storage method. That topic was written with many details, step by step to create air-gapped wallet.

Recommended Wallets by Jameson Lopp. For hardware wallet, he recommends Coldcard

Read more Wallet reviews with Cryptowisser.com

[m2017]

This dude @Ratimov made a huge list of hardware wallets which has a list of prices, a number of cryptocurrencies supported and a review of the hardware wallets which I think will give a better idea about what hardware wallet you are looking for.

Find on this thread.
https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=5282364.0

The most common and affordable hardware wallet is the Trezor one that costs only €59. But for the small amount that you wanted to store maybe Electrum is enough of what you need, I would rather choose this compared to others that you have mentioned above.

Don't you think that the number of sample wallets on this list is even more confusing for a beginner? He needs a simpler solution.

Using an air-gapped device will suffice assuming you actually know how to create one in the correct way. There are lots of ways of your keys getting leaked if you do things wrongly.

As much as possible, I'd find a way to get a reputable hardware wallet. Though ColdCard isn't really the best when it terms for beginner-friendliness, the reviews are mostly positive if you're a bitcoin-only person. For most people I'd still recommend either Ledger or Trezor.

For example, like Ledger or Trezor, what many recommend.

But in fact, at the moment, it seems that there is no choice. https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=5370521.0 - this topic is just discussing why you should wait with the purchase of Ledger in the near future.

In short, Nano S is deprecated and there is a possibility that support for the device will end soon. Nano X has problems with the battery and a marriage with the display - https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=5358741.0. Nano S+ has not yet appeared on sale and will it be possible to avoid defects at first, because Nano X has been on sale for a long time, but the devices have flaws.

So it turns out that the choice between Ledger or Trezor is obvious.

Using an air-gapped device will suffice assuming you actually know how to create one in the correct way. There are lots of ways of your keys getting leaked if you do things wrongly.

[Guide] Secure air-gapped crypto wallet storage method. That topic was written with many details, step by step to create air-gapped wallet.

Recommended Wallets by Jameson Lopp. For hardware wallet, he recommends Coldcard

Read more Wallet reviews with Cryptowisser.com

It seems to me that for a beginner, this option may be difficult to understand and topicstarter is looking for a more affordable option.

[dkbit98]

HI there, my journey to find and buy a hardware wallet which works for me.At the moment I am located in the EU (Malta) which brings me to the issue of shipping cost and customs.Whilst I was able to find a reasonable price to shipping the customs remain. At this point I am thinking about buying a ColdCard,Power-Only USB Cable, Power-Only USB Cable. The price comes to a little bellow 250 $ without customs which vary , so I am not even sure about the end price. However , I was thinking through the whole process and I still am not sure if I really need to spend that much on a hyped-up calculator. The setup I have in mind is using software like Sparrow , Electrum or Specter for the air gap transaction signing.The idea is to keep the funds private key as cold as possible but also usable on monthly bases if needed. Now I would love to hear suggestions and recommendations from a smart community like one here.

Hardware wallet is NOT mandatory device to have and it's not perfect by any means, but it has a good balance between security and simple easy usability.
That doesn't mean that every hardware wallet is made equal, and they all have their positive and negative sides compared to airgapped computer with opensource wallets.
If customs is what you are concerned, than I am sure you can find some official local resellers that sell them in Malta, and I would always choose open source device.
One option you have is to make your own signing device with Raspberry Pi Zero, and use it only for Bitcoin.

I made a list of most open source hardware wallets and signing devices, so you can check some of them below:

Open Source Hardware wallets:

• Trezor
• Bitbox
• Passport
• Jade
• Keystone

DIY Open Source Hardware wallets (and signing devices) (for advanced users):

• Bowser DIY Wallet
• Trezor DIY Wallet
• PiTrezor DIY Wallet
• Specter DIY Wallet
• SeedSigner DIY Wallet ^sd
• Krux DIY Wallet ^sd

You want to keep your privacy and avoid leaks when you purchase hardware wallets online, so you better check out my guide How to buy a Hardware Wallet the right way:

- Buy hardware wallet only from official website or reseller store.
 - Use Tor or VPN when registering to website and install ad blocking extension like uBlock.
 - Use alternative or disposable e-mail address and new random password for registration.
 - Use alternative prepaid phone number and not your real phone number for registration.
 - Use crypto for payment, not connected with your real ID, or pay with cash in your local authorized reseller.
 - Use alternative or fake name for registration.
 - Use PO boxes or alternative address for delivery.
 - Do your own research

[The Cryptovator]

From your post, I can assume you are enough experienced in how to save your funds and store them securely. To avoid complicity you may use a hardware wallet, since I have been using Ledger I can say it's safe and easy to use. It's more secure from Air gapped devices. But it's important to keep safe your seeds whatever you are using. Ledger Nano s isn't much costly, you may check from their official website.

[Raj Sri]

The price comes to a little bellow 250 $ without customs which vary , so I am not even sure about the end price.

I don't know where the price of $250 came from, because as far as I can see, the price of the Mk3 version is around $129, and you also get another 5% discount if you pay with Bitcoin. I know shipping costs and customs + VAT can be quite expensive, but $250 is still a little too much for HW considering there are alternatives.

On the other hand, if someone for obvious reasons does not want to trust the most famous manufacturers, then even $250 is not too much.

First of all, thank you all for you replys , they have been most helpful.


Second , from my post it can be read that I am not only buying MK3 only but also the before mentioned parts as well. Third , I don't have an issue with MK3 not being user friendly. My issue is with the idea I don't have any really solution for the problem as an end user. All of the wallets have a series of issues . Furthermore I do understand that nothing is perfect but at this point I can only see a small part of hardware wallets as usable for end users. The reason being the demand is huge as well as thirst for profit. This topic can go on a long time but that's not the point of it. The reason I asked is I feel as the popular wallets seem to be traps to make an easy buck. Some features are fine but most just don't work or are just useless.


To finish this reply, I will give you an example of what an end user like myself wants and it's not to worry about his funds , be able to spend them when she/he wants and not to have to worry if they need to watch out for the next hardware vulnerability. The vulnerability part might be much but still , it's possible if done right.I do have some experience with setting up air taps so I will try recreating the mentioned setup or most likey setup a DIY Open Source Hardware wallet using Raspberry Pi Zero.

[DoublerHunter]

~snip~
most likey setup a DIY Open Source Hardware wallet using Raspberry Pi Zero.

^ That is a good idea, please come back here and update us when you have a got full specifications.
All Raspberry Pi model is capable of an air-gapped wallet for BTC which is good to keep safe if you know how to manage it, that sounds good when you know how to start DIY using this Raspberry Pi. There is no safe wallet for me when it touches the internet so it deserves to be called it is a safe place when you have an air-gapped wallet but of course, it is quite risky.

[mk4]

For example, like Ledger or Trezor, what many recommend.

But in fact, at the moment, it seems that there is no choice. https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=5370521.0 - this topic is just discussing why you should wait with the purchase of Ledger in the near future.

In short, Nano S is deprecated and there is a possibility that support for the device will end soon. Nano X has problems with the battery and a marriage with the display - https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=5358741.0. Nano S+ has not yet appeared on sale and will it be possible to avoid defects at first, because Nano X has been on sale for a long time, but the devices have flaws.

So it turns out that the choice between Ledger or Trezor is obvious.

I own both the Ledger Nano S and Nano X and I've barely had problems in the whole 3-5 years of owning them. Sure, they're not perfect and there are cases where people had problems, but you could literally say the same with any other tech gadget. Also taking note that the Ledger subreddit is pretty much a tech support subreddit, so obviously you're going to see a lot of complaints. Almost no one will go out of their way to post "omg this device is so gud I never had problems!"

Also, it's the Ledger Blue that's deprecated, not the Ledger Nano S(not recommended if you want to hold multiple coins because of memory tho).

[Obito]

Unbranded tablets on amazon seem to sell for £50, you could probably find some from a shop that price (just make sure they run android) and then you can airgap with electrum without buying something more specific/expensive.

A lot of hardware wallets (like the trezor and ledger) do have signature verification built into them though, which makes them seem quite a bit more secure.

Have to be careful with buying online with hardware wallets, some fuckers just can't stop stealing from people by tampering the wallets and then stealing the funds from those people that have bought the tampered wallet. I myself bought a Trezor, pretty nice hardware wallet and it's easy to use although I don't have a lot to store in it though.

[o_e_l_e_o]

most likey setup a DIY Open Source Hardware wallet using Raspberry Pi Zero.

As long as you are aware of the risks you are accepting. Setting up a properly airgapped device and keeping it permanently airgapped is much harder than using a hardware wallet safely, although certainly easier starting with a Pi Zero since there is connectivity hardware to start with. And although you might eliminate the attack vectors against certain hardware wallet vulnerabilities, you are introducing new attack vectors which can be used to extract data from airgapped devices.

If it fits your threat model, then great, but just make sure you have fully examined your threat model.

Have to be careful with buying online with hardware wallets, some fuckers just can't stop stealing from people by tampering the wallets and then stealing the funds from those people that have bought the tampered wallet.

You should always purchase direct from the retailer. Further, many hardware wallets provide instructions or steps on how to verify the integrity of the wallet before you start using it.

[Pmalek]

I can suggest you cheap one try trezor one wallet its cost you only 160 USD. With this bit of amount, your all bitcoin becomes secure.

Not sure where you got this price from. The Trezor One is currently priced at €63. This varies from country to country though. I see Trezor Model T at €224 in their shop. The price you mentioned is wrong for both Trezor devices.
I only checked Ledger's and Trezor's reseller networks and both don't have anything official in Malta. I would recommend buying from the official store rather than a reseller though. But since you mentioned you want to save on customs and shipping costs, I took a look.
Unless you find a local tech gadget store in your close vicinity (not recommended), you are stuck paying all the additional costs by shipping the device to your place. An alternative is shipping it to a family member/friend/other party somewhere else where the costs are cheaper.   

[Raj Sri]

Update



The Raspberry pi air gap is a great way to store if done right but for me the bulkiness would be an issue. The whole setup would require just added cost which does not benefit the issue. I still really feel as the issue isn't just in mine why of privacy/security/trust/design, etc. But the supply of hardware wallets isn't up to a standard which I see all the topics mentioned should be at. And yes I have read articles like this one ( https://blog.keyst.one/air-gapped-computers-and-phones-vs-hardware-wallets-whats-the-difference-458888cdd97?gi=bd6beb5edf8d) and many others. Don't get the wrong impression, I don't have a Snowden like threat level , I just like to know that if I am paying for something that the product works for me. That it can't be stolen for data extraction, that the suppy-chain attack isn't something I have to worry, they won't get hacked and lose my data , the device can be store bought for cash etc. You get the point , I will play around with the Raspberry pi air gap but id does not work well in a scenario where one would be hiding the device in one place the seed in a different location and so on.

[dkbit98]

The Raspberry pi air gap is a great way to store if done right but for me the bulkiness would be an issue. The whole setup would require just added cost which does not benefit the issue. I still really feel as the issue isn't just in mine why of privacy/security/trust/design, etc.

There are several wallets and signing devices made from Raspberry Pi Zero, and some of them are really interesting projects, but it's not that easy to purchase Pi Zero 1.3 now and price is higher than it was before.
You should also count in all other parts that you need to buy to assemble all together, and ask yourself if you have the skills and will to do all this.
One bad thing about using Raspberry Pi zero as a signing device is that it is much slower to boot than regular hardware wallets, reason is I think it's using modified linux os