Refurbished laptop for cold storage?

[Chicowash]

What if the hdd of that laptop fails ?
I would recomend to keep your cold storage in several places.

[Salmon1989]

What if the hdd of that laptop fails ?
I would recomend to keep your cold storage in several places.

Indeed IMO backups are essentials, no matter you are using paper wallets, cold wallets, or hot wallets.

[bitbaby]

Is it okay to use a refurbished laptop to make a cold wallet as long as I remove the wireless card? Can an encrypted wallet with over 30 characters(random, numbers, LC letters, Capital letters, and special characters) still easily be hacked without using a keylogger to obtain the password?

You're safe with that setup, since it will stay offline, you don't have to worry about getting hacked but do remember to make several backups at various offline usbs, coz refurbished laptops hdds are pretty used and they usually die very fast.

[ALToids]

Is it okay to use a refurbished laptop to make a cold wallet as long as I remove the wireless card? Can an encrypted wallet with over 30 characters(random, numbers, LC letters, Capital letters, and special characters) still easily be hacked without using a keylogger to obtain the password?

That's a decent high entropy password. The problem is will you remember the password in 10 years?  If you get injured could somebody who you want to give the wallet to be able to open it.

Using 8 random words that you memorize and alternating use of spacebar would be easier.

Of course having a paper wallet is a safety workaround.

[Bernard Lerring]

I'll tell you what's a decent high entropy password: running the serial number of your refrigerator through SHA256SUM.

[ALToids]

I'll tell you what's a decent high entropy password: running the serial number of your refrigerator through SHA256SUM.

That would work if you use your wallet somewhat regularly.  If you truly keep your cold wallet cold and only touch it once every 2 years or something then when your fridge dies you'll recycle it and 2 months later be like "oh crap".

Making it 6-8 words like the names of all your schools or your kids' names backwards with random spaces avoids dictionary attacks and is easy to remember.