A common complaint about crypto is that it is still relatively inaccessible, and can be intimidating and unintuitive for newcomers.
This can refer to the underlying product itself, in the sense that prices are volatile. It can refer to exchanges and centralized crypto platforms, with the now-disgraced FTX having led the way in defrauding its users and undermining adoption. And, it can refer to the user experience, meaning the tools and applications through which we interact with crypto.
Directly addressing the latter two of those issues (and from there, indirectly, the remaining issue as well), is a new product from the leading cold wallet maker, Ledger, which could, potentially, go down as a significant and influential piece of crypto hardware.
The Ledger Stax is the newest hardware wallet from French company Ledger, unveiled at the Ledger Op3n conference in Paris and scheduled for release by the end of March 2023.
Ledger’s devices up to now have a perfect track record when it comes to security, but where the Stax makes a significant departure is on the surface. It was designed by Tony Fadell, who is known for having designed the Apple iPod, and it looks every bit as sleek and attractive as any Apple product.
It’s small, utilizes a curved, E Ink touchscreen, and several devices can lock together using magnets, so you can carry a handheld stack of crypto and NFTs just as you might bundle together a stack of banknotes.
NFTs can be displayed on the wallet’s surface, QR codes can be generated to quickly carry out transactions, and NFC technology is included in the very smooth minimal-looking package.
Check out the recent London Summit session on the topic: “Digital assets’ marketing under a magnifying glass.”
What Issues Are Addressed by Ledger Stax?
Self-Custody
The end of 2022 has seen an outflow of bitcoin from centralized exchanges, triggered by the collapses of FTX, and, earlier in the year, Celsius and Three Arrows Capital.
Many bitcoin veterans, who have a deep understanding of the leading cryptocurrency’s potential utility, have, in fact, greeted this as a long-term positive development. A common refrain from bitcoiners has always been not your keys, not your coins, with keys referring to the cryptographic keys to your wallet, something you only possess if you self-custody your assets.
In contrast, if you keep your coins on an exchange
Exchange
An exchange is known as a marketplace that supports the trading of derivatives, commodities, securities, and other financial instruments.Generally, an exchange is accessible through a digital platform or sometimes at a tangible address where investors organize to perform trading. Among the chief responsibilities of an exchange would be to uphold honest and fair-trading practices. These are instrumental in making sure that the distribution of supported security rates on that exchange are effectively relevant with real-time pricing.Depending upon where you reside, an exchange may be referred to as a bourse or a share exchange while, as a whole, exchanges are present within the majority of countries. Who is Listed on an Exchange?As trading continues to transition more to electronic exchanges, transactions become more dispersed through varying exchanges. This in turn has caused a surge in the implementation of trading algorithms and high-frequency trading applications. In order for a company to be listed on a stock exchange for example, a company must divulge information such as minimum capital requirements, audited earnings reports, and financial reports.Not all exchanges are created equally, with some outperforming other exchanges significantly. The most high-profile exchanges to date include the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), the Tokyo Stock Exchange (TSE), the London Stock Exchange (LSE), and the Nasdaq. Outside of trading, a stock exchange may be used by companies aiming to raise capital, this is most commonly seen in the form of initial public offerings (IPOs).Exchanges can now handle other asset classes, given the rise of cryptocurrencies as a more popularized form of trading.
An exchange is known as a marketplace that supports the trading of derivatives, commodities, securities, and other financial instruments.Generally, an exchange is accessible through a digital platform or sometimes at a tangible address where investors organize to perform trading. Among the chief responsibilities of an exchange would be to uphold honest and fair-trading practices. These are instrumental in making sure that the distribution of supported security rates on that exchange are effectively relevant with real-time pricing.Depending upon where you reside, an exchange may be referred to as a bourse or a share exchange while, as a whole, exchanges are present within the majority of countries. Who is Listed on an Exchange?As trading continues to transition more to electronic exchanges, transactions become more dispersed through varying exchanges. This in turn has caused a surge in the implementation of trading algorithms and high-frequency trading applications. In order for a company to be listed on a stock exchange for example, a company must divulge information such as minimum capital requirements, audited earnings reports, and financial reports.Not all exchanges are created equally, with some outperforming other exchanges significantly. The most high-profile exchanges to date include the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), the Tokyo Stock Exchange (TSE), the London Stock Exchange (LSE), and the Nasdaq. Outside of trading, a stock exchange may be used by companies aiming to raise capital, this is most commonly seen in the form of initial public offerings (IPOs).Exchanges can now handle other asset classes, given the rise of cryptocurrencies as a more popularized form of trading. Read this Term, then what you actually have is nothing other than a claim on the coins in the exchange’s wallets.
Utilize an honest platform, and you should be fine, or so the thinking went. But then, in the case of FTX, which was widely considered to be the most secure exchange, the company’s wallets abruptly stopped paying out.
It’s a harsh lesson by which to be taught, but if monumental levels of fraud and recklessness are what it takes to shift crypto holders towards actually holding their own crypto, then there is ultimately, arguably, a long-term bright side to the platform collapses that have characterized the bear market of 2022.
And, as self-custody leads to hardware wallets, that equates to a bright side for Ledger, as it goes about manufacturing physical solutions to the problem of unreliable, centralized crypto platforms.
User Experience
To be an early adopter, one must be comfortable with navigating technology that has not yet prioritized user experience, and for over a decade, this has been the case with bitcoin and crypto.
However, we are now reaching the stage at which, for crypto to take further strides, ease of use is an increasingly pressing issue. This can be achieved by centralized intermediaries, but as we’ve seen, centralized exchanges have proven hazardous, and they steer us away from the core premises around which crypto is built: decentralization and self-reliance.
Hardware wallets provide us with the capacity to look after our own crypto, but the user experience around this tech has been distant from the glossy interfaces we’re accustomed to when, for example, tapping at the touchscreen of a shiny new Samsung smartphone.
When it comes to wallets, Ledger may be the market leader in its niche, but the reality is that its current hardware is difficult to use, with fiddly analogue controls, and tiny, throwback displays that are reminiscent of micro-sized Casio calculators.
In a high-fidelity AI-augmented era, it’s incongruous that the blockchain tech touted as cutting-edge currency for the metaverse requires us to poke at gadgets that feel somewhere between a Tamagotchi and a 1990s pager, even as they purport to reassure users that this is, in fact, a pathway to financial security.
And, this is where the new Ledger Stax distinguishes itself. Although we only have the company’s own promotional material to go on, it is the first hardware wallet and, in fact, the first physical crypto product, that looks like it was designed for tech-savvy mass consumption in the 2020s.
Critically, it seems like the kind of item that might demystify cryptocurrencies, and assist in syncing up blockchain-based decentralized money with the existing world of smartphones and cashless payments.
Crypto for the Real World with Ledger Stax
If cryptocurrencies are to achieve real-world, working status, then they must find a way to combine decentralization and self-custody with easy utility and, when it comes down to it, a higher degree of surface aesthetic quality.
Ledger looks like it’s about to take a meaningful step in this direction, and may now set the standard for competitors to emulate.
As for that third issue mentioned earlier, the problem of price volatility
Volatility
In finance, volatility refers to the amount of change in the rate of a financial instrument, such as commodities, currencies, stocks, over a given time period. Essentially, volatility describes the nature of an instrument’s fluctuation; a highly volatile security equates to large fluctuations in price, and a low volatile security equates to timid fluctuations in price. Volatility is an important statistical indicator used by financial traders to assist them in developing trading systems. Traders can be successful in both low and high volatile environments, but the strategies employed are often different depending upon volatility. Why Too Much Volatility is a ProblemIn the FX space, lower volatile currency pairs offer less surprises, and are suited to position traders.High volatile pairs are attractive for many day traders, due to quick and strong movements, offering the potential for higher profits, although the risk associated with such volatile pairs are many. Overall, a look at previous volatility tells us how likely price will fluctuate in the future, although it has nothing to do with direction.All a trader can gather from this is the understanding that the probability of a volatile pair to increase or decrease an X amount in a Y period of time, is more than the probability of a non-volatile pair. Another important factor is, volatility can and does change over time, and there can be periods when even highly volatile instruments show signs of flatness, with price not really making headway in either direction. Too little volatility is just as problematic for markets as too much, we uncertainty in excess can create panic and problems of liquidity. This was evident during Black Swan events or other crisis that have historically roiled currency and equity markets.
In finance, volatility refers to the amount of change in the rate of a financial instrument, such as commodities, currencies, stocks, over a given time period. Essentially, volatility describes the nature of an instrument’s fluctuation; a highly volatile security equates to large fluctuations in price, and a low volatile security equates to timid fluctuations in price. Volatility is an important statistical indicator used by financial traders to assist them in developing trading systems. Traders can be successful in both low and high volatile environments, but the strategies employed are often different depending upon volatility. Why Too Much Volatility is a ProblemIn the FX space, lower volatile currency pairs offer less surprises, and are suited to position traders.High volatile pairs are attractive for many day traders, due to quick and strong movements, offering the potential for higher profits, although the risk associated with such volatile pairs are many. Overall, a look at previous volatility tells us how likely price will fluctuate in the future, although it has nothing to do with direction.All a trader can gather from this is the understanding that the probability of a volatile pair to increase or decrease an X amount in a Y period of time, is more than the probability of a non-volatile pair. Another important factor is, volatility can and does change over time, and there can be periods when even highly volatile instruments show signs of flatness, with price not really making headway in either direction. Too little volatility is just as problematic for markets as too much, we uncertainty in excess can create panic and problems of liquidity. This was evident during Black Swan events or other crisis that have historically roiled currency and equity markets. Read this Term, it’s through adoption, expansion and everyday use that this factor will begin to resolve, and so, indirectly but importantly, Ledger’s improved hardware can contribute in this respect too.
A common complaint about crypto is that it is still relatively inaccessible, and can be intimidating and unintuitive for newcomers.
This can refer to the underlying product itself, in the sense that prices are volatile. It can refer to exchanges and centralized crypto platforms, with the now-disgraced FTX having led the way in defrauding its users and undermining adoption. And, it can refer to the user experience, meaning the tools and applications through which we interact with crypto.
Directly addressing the latter two of those issues (and from there, indirectly, the remaining issue as well), is a new product from the leading cold wallet maker, Ledger, which could, potentially, go down as a significant and influential piece of crypto hardware.
The Ledger Stax is the newest hardware wallet from French company Ledger, unveiled at the Ledger Op3n conference in Paris and scheduled for release by the end of March 2023.
Ledger’s devices up to now have a perfect track record when it comes to security, but where the Stax makes a significant departure is on the surface. It was designed by Tony Fadell, who is known for having designed the Apple iPod, and it looks every bit as sleek and attractive as any Apple product.
It’s small, utilizes a curved, E Ink touchscreen, and several devices can lock together using magnets, so you can carry a handheld stack of crypto and NFTs just as you might bundle together a stack of banknotes.
NFTs can be displayed on the wallet’s surface, QR codes can be generated to quickly carry out transactions, and NFC technology is included in the very smooth minimal-looking package.
Check out the recent London Summit session on the topic: “Digital assets’ marketing under a magnifying glass.”
What Issues Are Addressed by Ledger Stax?
Self-Custody
The end of 2022 has seen an outflow of bitcoin from centralized exchanges, triggered by the collapses of FTX, and, earlier in the year, Celsius and Three Arrows Capital.
Many bitcoin veterans, who have a deep understanding of the leading cryptocurrency’s potential utility, have, in fact, greeted this as a long-term positive development. A common refrain from bitcoiners has always been not your keys, not your coins, with keys referring to the cryptographic keys to your wallet, something you only possess if you self-custody your assets.
In contrast, if you keep your coins on an exchange
Exchange
An exchange is known as a marketplace that supports the trading of derivatives, commodities, securities, and other financial instruments.Generally, an exchange is accessible through a digital platform or sometimes at a tangible address where investors organize to perform trading. Among the chief responsibilities of an exchange would be to uphold honest and fair-trading practices. These are instrumental in making sure that the distribution of supported security rates on that exchange are effectively relevant with real-time pricing.Depending upon where you reside, an exchange may be referred to as a bourse or a share exchange while, as a whole, exchanges are present within the majority of countries. Who is Listed on an Exchange?As trading continues to transition more to electronic exchanges, transactions become more dispersed through varying exchanges. This in turn has caused a surge in the implementation of trading algorithms and high-frequency trading applications. In order for a company to be listed on a stock exchange for example, a company must divulge information such as minimum capital requirements, audited earnings reports, and financial reports.Not all exchanges are created equally, with some outperforming other exchanges significantly. The most high-profile exchanges to date include the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), the Tokyo Stock Exchange (TSE), the London Stock Exchange (LSE), and the Nasdaq. Outside of trading, a stock exchange may be used by companies aiming to raise capital, this is most commonly seen in the form of initial public offerings (IPOs).Exchanges can now handle other asset classes, given the rise of cryptocurrencies as a more popularized form of trading.
An exchange is known as a marketplace that supports the trading of derivatives, commodities, securities, and other financial instruments.Generally, an exchange is accessible through a digital platform or sometimes at a tangible address where investors organize to perform trading. Among the chief responsibilities of an exchange would be to uphold honest and fair-trading practices. These are instrumental in making sure that the distribution of supported security rates on that exchange are effectively relevant with real-time pricing.Depending upon where you reside, an exchange may be referred to as a bourse or a share exchange while, as a whole, exchanges are present within the majority of countries. Who is Listed on an Exchange?As trading continues to transition more to electronic exchanges, transactions become more dispersed through varying exchanges. This in turn has caused a surge in the implementation of trading algorithms and high-frequency trading applications. In order for a company to be listed on a stock exchange for example, a company must divulge information such as minimum capital requirements, audited earnings reports, and financial reports.Not all exchanges are created equally, with some outperforming other exchanges significantly. The most high-profile exchanges to date include the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), the Tokyo Stock Exchange (TSE), the London Stock Exchange (LSE), and the Nasdaq. Outside of trading, a stock exchange may be used by companies aiming to raise capital, this is most commonly seen in the form of initial public offerings (IPOs).Exchanges can now handle other asset classes, given the rise of cryptocurrencies as a more popularized form of trading. Read this Term, then what you actually have is nothing other than a claim on the coins in the exchange’s wallets.
Utilize an honest platform, and you should be fine, or so the thinking went. But then, in the case of FTX, which was widely considered to be the most secure exchange, the company’s wallets abruptly stopped paying out.
It’s a harsh lesson by which to be taught, but if monumental levels of fraud and recklessness are what it takes to shift crypto holders towards actually holding their own crypto, then there is ultimately, arguably, a long-term bright side to the platform collapses that have characterized the bear market of 2022.
And, as self-custody leads to hardware wallets, that equates to a bright side for Ledger, as it goes about manufacturing physical solutions to the problem of unreliable, centralized crypto platforms.
User Experience
To be an early adopter, one must be comfortable with navigating technology that has not yet prioritized user experience, and for over a decade, this has been the case with bitcoin and crypto.
However, we are now reaching the stage at which, for crypto to take further strides, ease of use is an increasingly pressing issue. This can be achieved by centralized intermediaries, but as we’ve seen, centralized exchanges have proven hazardous, and they steer us away from the core premises around which crypto is built: decentralization and self-reliance.
Hardware wallets provide us with the capacity to look after our own crypto, but the user experience around this tech has been distant from the glossy interfaces we’re accustomed to when, for example, tapping at the touchscreen of a shiny new Samsung smartphone.
When it comes to wallets, Ledger may be the market leader in its niche, but the reality is that its current hardware is difficult to use, with fiddly analogue controls, and tiny, throwback displays that are reminiscent of micro-sized Casio calculators.
In a high-fidelity AI-augmented era, it’s incongruous that the blockchain tech touted as cutting-edge currency for the metaverse requires us to poke at gadgets that feel somewhere between a Tamagotchi and a 1990s pager, even as they purport to reassure users that this is, in fact, a pathway to financial security.
And, this is where the new Ledger Stax distinguishes itself. Although we only have the company’s own promotional material to go on, it is the first hardware wallet and, in fact, the first physical crypto product, that looks like it was designed for tech-savvy mass consumption in the 2020s.
Critically, it seems like the kind of item that might demystify cryptocurrencies, and assist in syncing up blockchain-based decentralized money with the existing world of smartphones and cashless payments.
Crypto for the Real World with Ledger Stax
If cryptocurrencies are to achieve real-world, working status, then they must find a way to combine decentralization and self-custody with easy utility and, when it comes down to it, a higher degree of surface aesthetic quality.
Ledger looks like it’s about to take a meaningful step in this direction, and may now set the standard for competitors to emulate.
As for that third issue mentioned earlier, the problem of price volatility
Volatility
In finance, volatility refers to the amount of change in the rate of a financial instrument, such as commodities, currencies, stocks, over a given time period. Essentially, volatility describes the nature of an instrument’s fluctuation; a highly volatile security equates to large fluctuations in price, and a low volatile security equates to timid fluctuations in price. Volatility is an important statistical indicator used by financial traders to assist them in developing trading systems. Traders can be successful in both low and high volatile environments, but the strategies employed are often different depending upon volatility. Why Too Much Volatility is a ProblemIn the FX space, lower volatile currency pairs offer less surprises, and are suited to position traders.High volatile pairs are attractive for many day traders, due to quick and strong movements, offering the potential for higher profits, although the risk associated with such volatile pairs are many. Overall, a look at previous volatility tells us how likely price will fluctuate in the future, although it has nothing to do with direction.All a trader can gather from this is the understanding that the probability of a volatile pair to increase or decrease an X amount in a Y period of time, is more than the probability of a non-volatile pair. Another important factor is, volatility can and does change over time, and there can be periods when even highly volatile instruments show signs of flatness, with price not really making headway in either direction. Too little volatility is just as problematic for markets as too much, we uncertainty in excess can create panic and problems of liquidity. This was evident during Black Swan events or other crisis that have historically roiled currency and equity markets.
In finance, volatility refers to the amount of change in the rate of a financial instrument, such as commodities, currencies, stocks, over a given time period. Essentially, volatility describes the nature of an instrument’s fluctuation; a highly volatile security equates to large fluctuations in price, and a low volatile security equates to timid fluctuations in price. Volatility is an important statistical indicator used by financial traders to assist them in developing trading systems. Traders can be successful in both low and high volatile environments, but the strategies employed are often different depending upon volatility. Why Too Much Volatility is a ProblemIn the FX space, lower volatile currency pairs offer less surprises, and are suited to position traders.High volatile pairs are attractive for many day traders, due to quick and strong movements, offering the potential for higher profits, although the risk associated with such volatile pairs are many. Overall, a look at previous volatility tells us how likely price will fluctuate in the future, although it has nothing to do with direction.All a trader can gather from this is the understanding that the probability of a volatile pair to increase or decrease an X amount in a Y period of time, is more than the probability of a non-volatile pair. Another important factor is, volatility can and does change over time, and there can be periods when even highly volatile instruments show signs of flatness, with price not really making headway in either direction. Too little volatility is just as problematic for markets as too much, we uncertainty in excess can create panic and problems of liquidity. This was evident during Black Swan events or other crisis that have historically roiled currency and equity markets. Read this Term, it’s through adoption, expansion and everyday use that this factor will begin to resolve, and so, indirectly but importantly, Ledger’s improved hardware can contribute in this respect too.
Opinion by: Hatu Sheikh, founding father of Coin TerminalThough blockchains and DApps are crucial, crypto trade stakeholders typically prioritize functions...
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