Hardware Wallets are becoming a luxury

[Lucius]

~snip~
Premium devices never bring the best value for money, and I see no reason hardware wallets should be any different in that regard. I see no problem with Trezor asking for 250 euros for their top of the line hardware wallet. In the grand scheme of things, that’s still peanuts.

I live by the saying "I'm not rich enough to buy cheap things" and I've found that it definitely makes sense. All the premium devices I bought 5+ years ago still work perfectly today and had a 5-year warranty, and on the other hand, I see and hear people complaining that their TVs, computers, and smartphones break down after 2-3 years.

I'm not one of those who throw money away for no reason, but I don't mind paying more for a premium product, especially when it comes to hardware wallets. If you only have 0.5 BTC, I don't see the point in complaining that $200 for a hardware wallet is too much, and then at the same time buying a smartphone that costs three times as much.

[Rikafip]

I live by the saying "I'm not rich enough to buy cheap things" and I've found that it definitely makes sense.

Same here, and for that reason I almost never buy the cheapest stuff. Just recently I made an exception and bought Trezor Safe 3 and like an hour after buying I regretted for nothing going for at least Safe 5 as difference was like $60, which is something I spent very next day in the restaurant.

From my experience, midrange devices offer the best value for money. They include almost all the features of high end devices, only missing a few minor things that most people won't even notice. Of course, we all have different priorities, and sometimes you don't care about getting the "best value" and you just get what you want. For some its the smartphone and for some the hardware wallet.

[Lucius]

I live by the saying "I'm not rich enough to buy cheap things" and I've found that it definitely makes sense.

Same here, and for that reason I almost never buy the cheapest stuff. Just recently I made an exception and bought Trezor Safe 3 and like an hour after buying I regretted for nothing going for at least Safe 5 as difference was like $60, which is something I spent very next day in the restaurant.
~snip~

I bought the T5 a while ago because I had some relatively valuable alts that needed to be moved from the Ledger, and I didn't mind paying more than it normally costs considering I chose the limited edition. I'm always guided by the fact that it's better to buy a newer product because that way I get long-term support - in any case, it's not a bad hardware wallet and I think it's worth the money I paid.

[Rikafip]

I'm always guided by the fact that it's better to buy a newer product because that way I get long-term support - in any case, it's not a bad hardware wallet and I think it's worth the money I paid.

Yeah, that makes sense, especially since the differences between wallet prices aren't like $1k, but usually like $50–$100.

The main reason I ended up with the Safe 3 instead of the Safe 5 is that I plan to move on to the Safe 7 in the near future. I didn't want to get that one yet, since I'd rather wait a bit longer to get more feedback. Its still too new, and I needed a new wallet asap as Ledger's screen is dying.

[Pmalek]

People are hard to please. Give them cheap plastic devices with bad hardware components that break easily, and they will complain about the quality. Give them more sturdy hardware wallets, built from more quality materials and with better hardware, and they will complain about the price.

Hardware wallet manufacturers are producing that what users want to see. Everyone prefers bigger touchscreens, cameras, non-plastic bodies and covers, etc. Plus, they want their hardware wallets to look good, like they are starting a family with them. All that adds to the price tag.

There are still models that don't cost as much. Trezor has a few. You can also go for the DIY options, such as Seedsigner, Jade, Krux, Specter, etc. These are also airgapped, which is an additional benefit. If you only need a hardware signer for your bitcoin, they aren't that costly. Passport and Coldcard are exceptions.

[satscraper]

People are hard to please. Give them cheap plastic devices with bad hardware components that break easily, and they will complain about the quality. Give them more sturdy hardware wallets, built from more quality materials and with better hardware, and they will complain about the price.

Hardware wallet manufacturers are producing that what users want to see. Everyone prefers bigger touchscreens, cameras, non-plastic bodies and covers, etc. Plus, they want their hardware wallets to look good, like they are starting a family with them. All that adds to the price tag.

There are still models that don't cost as much. Trezor has a few. You can also go for the DIY options, such as Seedsigner, Jade, Krux, Specter, etc. These are also airgapped, which is an additional benefit. If you only need a hardware signer for your bitcoin, they aren't that costly. Passport and Coldcard are exceptions.

Agreed, I would prefer to have the higher priced Real McCoy HW than cheap plastic stuff that lacks fail-safe or fault-tolerant components. One may find wallets at a low price, but they often fall apart after the short period of use. A striking example of this is Ledger’s product, which constantly shows malfunctioning screens, failing batteries, and other issues.

[Lucius]

Agreed, I would prefer to have the higher priced Real McCoy HW than cheap plastic stuff that lacks fail-safe or fault-tolerant components. One may find wallets at a low price, but they often fall apart after the short period of use. A striking example of this is Ledger’s product, which constantly shows malfunctioning screens, failing batteries, and other issues.

This is true, but it should be noted that these problems began to appear around the time the pandemic was declared and afterwards, when supply chains were disrupted and materials became more expensive. I have their S and X models that were purchased before that and both are still fully functional without any problems.

I assume that at some point they opted for a cheaper production model in order to keep their prices competitive, because otherwise they wouldn't be able to maintain their position if you take into account all the scandals they have produced over the years.

[Rikafip]

This is true, but it should be noted that these problems began to appear around the time the pandemic was declared and afterwards, when supply chains were disrupted and materials became more expensive.

I bought my Ledger Nano S years before Covid, back in 2017, and have issues with screen.

To be fair, that problems appeared only maybe 6 months ago, but also I haven't used Ledger often, with periods of more than 6 months without touching it. Either way, it served me well all these years and I don't think its a big deal that screen started dying after 8 years.

[Pmalek]

This is true, but it should be noted that these problems began to appear around the time the pandemic was declared and afterwards, when supply chains were disrupted and materials became more expensive. I have their S and X models that were purchased before that and both are still fully functional without any problems.

I still have my Nano S that I bought 5/6 years ago. It's the oldest hardware wallet in my portfolio. The device still works, and holds a few selected altcoins that I still haven't moved. I will probably transfer those to my Trezor Safe 3 once I finally have it. The Nano S has served me really well for the price I got it for. People don't expect their high-end smartphones to work that well after five or six years. The screen works, the buttons work, etc. 

[Lucius]

I bought my Ledger Nano S years before Covid, back in 2017, and have issues with screen.
~snip~

I think mine is from that period too, and if memory serves me right I bought it when the price was around $8000. Honestly, I haven't looked at my S in a long time because I've been using the X more, but it doesn't really matter now since I won't be using them anymore.

~snip~
I will probably transfer those to my Trezor Safe 3 once I finally have it. The Nano S has served me really well for the price I got it for. People don't expect their high-end smartphones to work that well after five or six years. The screen works, the buttons work, etc.

Haven't you learned anything from @Rikafip experience? I guess the T3 isn't a bad model, but why not go with version 5 or even maybe 7? By the way, I have a smartphone that is exactly that old and still works like it did on day one - the only thing is that it stopped receiving updates a long time ago. Still, it was worth buying it and paying, if I remember correctly, around 700 EUR, which is a device that would cost at least twice as much today.

[satscraper]

Honestly, I haven't looked at my S in a long time because I've been using the X more, but it doesn't really matter now since I won't be using them anymore.

At least you may want to use your old Ledger nano s as 2FA HW-dongle by installing  Ledger Security Key app on it to authenticate yourself on websites that support hardware key authentication. I destroyed my nano s but I have three Yubico 5 devices for this purpose and find this way of authentication very convenient, not to mention the elevated security they provide for my relevant accounts.

[Pmalek]

Haven't you learned anything from @Rikafip experience?

What experience is that? He didn't specify what's wrong with his Safe 3 if I remember correctly.

I guess the T3 isn't a bad model, but why not go with version 5 or even maybe 7?

I didn't buy the Trezor Safe 3. I won it in a competition on the forum together with a steel plate for recovery words. I think it's more than a year ago now, lol. As I said, it's still not in my hands, so I haven't had a chance to test it out yet and possibly figure out what problems Rikafip had with it.

[Rikafip]

What experience is that? He didn't specify what's wrong with his Safe 3 if I remember correctly.

You remember correctly, I don't have any issues with Safe 3. At least not yet as I still haven't bothered to unbox it and set it up. 

[BABY SHOES]

This is true, but it should be noted that these problems began to appear around the time the pandemic was declared and afterwards, when supply chains were disrupted and materials became more expensive.

I bought my Ledger Nano S years before Covid, back in 2017, and have issues with screen.

To be fair, that problems appeared only maybe 6 months ago, but also I haven't used Ledger often, with periods of more than 6 months without touching it. Either way, it served me well all these years and I don't think its a big deal that screen started dying after 8 years.

It's true that Ledger Nano S often has problems on the screen, I had a case like this in 2022 and left this device alone, like a useless item but fortunately there are no assets.

Have done all kinds of tare to replace the OLED screen with the tricks shared here but still for me it is difficult to open the screen, rather than the Ledger Nano S being damaged (broken) it is better to be in a museum. Lol and give the new hardware is much more secure than the Nano which I know is now limited to store assets in this HW.

[Lucius]

At least you may want to use your old Ledger nano s as 2FA HW-dongle...
~snip~

I don't trust these devices to use them for anything, so they will gather dust until time destroys them or I find a purpose for them.

Haven't you learned anything from @Rikafip experience?

What experience is that? He didn't specify what's wrong with his Safe 3 if I remember correctly.
~snip~

There's nothing wrong with his T3, he just wrote that he quickly regretted not buying a T5. I didn't know you already had a T3 in your possession.

[Meuserna]

At least you may want to use your old Ledger nano s as 2FA HW-dongle...
~snip~

I don't trust these devices to use them for anything, so they will gather dust until time destroys them or I find a purpose for them.

Same! Except there's only one purpose I'd ever use a Ledger for.

I use my old Ledgers as decoy wallets. I store them in the first place a thief would look if somebody searched my home.

I doubt anybody ever will, but it made more sense to use the Ledgers as decoy wallets rather than destroy them.

[Knight Hider]

But I agree withyour point, you still can get hardware wallet for a good price. I bought my first wallet maybe 7 or 8 years ago for maybe $50 on Black Friday.

I bought my first hardware wallet for 0.02x bitcoin. The last hww I bought was 40 times cheaper.

[satscraper]

I use my old Ledgers as decoy wallets. I store them in the first place a thief would look if somebody searched my home.

Nice appliance! You are pretty witty. I would never think about this, but if I could, I would probably put a few sats in it ^{(no more than $20)} and accompany such decoy wallet with  PIN/SEED placed in a visible spot, so that anyone potentially prowling in the corridors of my home would be satisfied and make themselves scarce.

[Cricktor]

...

Indeed, that's a good (and probably the only) use for the Ledger crap.

As for the decoy and canary wallet purpose, I'd put a bit more convincing amounts in it. $20 or less than very low three-figure amounts don't really appear much convincing for my taste, to be honest.

Put in what you can afford to loose and what might deter an intruder from further deep digging at your place. Be sure to keep a low public crypto profile and don't brag about your crypto holdings, of course. And obviously, avoid blockchain connections of your decoy wallet to your main stash!

I won't elaborate further so to not digress too much from this here.

[Meuserna]

...

Indeed, that's a good (and probably the only) use for the Ledger crap.

As for the decoy and canary wallet purpose, I'd put a bit more convincing amounts in it. $20 or less than very low three-figure amounts don't really appear much convincing for my taste, to be honest.

I agree. My way of doing it is to buy what looks like a lot of something but is actually trash. 1 million Shib, for example. That costs less than $8, but it looks impressive to an idiot. Stick a sticky note on the hardware wallet that says "1 Million Shib!"

A thief would either not know what that means, and think it's something worth stealing. Or, the thief will know it's trash and think I'm an idiot for believing it'll someday have value (which, of course, it won't). Either way, the decoy served its purpose.

I won't elaborate further so to not digress too much from this here.

The topic of the thread is covered.

Hardware wallets aren't becoming a luxury. A Trezor Model One costs $19. Trezor Safe 3 is still on sale for around $50. With Krux, you can easily get very advanced DIY hardware wallets that are airgapped, stateless and offer encrypted seed QR for under $50. Those aren't lux prices.

What's becoming a luxury are silly gadgets for gadget guys who care more about being trendy and having the latest thing for the sake of online street-cred.