The recent uproar about Ledger's new seed recovery program had me thinking. I should probably spread out my risks in case the future scenario where the backdoor becomes a reality. I moved some of my crypto assets into Trezor as it is open source. I also decided to try out some other hardware wallet solutions. After some research, I purchased products from Tangem, a Swiss-based company.
The best way I can sum up Tangem is this: it's a fancier paper wallet in the form of a debit/credit card. It uses the Near-field communication (NFC) scanner in your phone to read and conduct transactions. It's not much different from you using Apple Pay and whatnot. Tangem has a dedicated app that facilitates the scanning and transaction process.
Like Trezor, Tangem is also open source. So, there is insurance against potential malicious updates.
I tried out one of the Tangem Notes. Tangem Notes usually only allows for one specific crypto asset. In this case, I chose the Doge one to play around with this new product. Functionally, it's much like gift cards.
It's easy to set up. With a scan of the phone, you could identify the card. You activate it by transferring Doge to the wallet address. The subsequent times you scan the card, the image becomes this:
It comes with a QR code that helps make payments a scan away.
The actual hard wallet is a bit more complex than the Tangem Note. The Tangem hardware wallet supports many assets. The process has multiple checkpoints to ensure you have set up the primary card and backups (up to two). Each card has a unique number on the back.
The display of the hardware wallet is similar to the Note, but there is no option to hide the balances. So, it might be a good idea to exit the app after you finish your business with your cold wallet. Tangem's greatest strength is that there's no way to access your wallet without physical access.
While it sounds great for some to have no dealings with seed phrases, Tangem has its downsides. You'd need protection from unwanted scanners. Fortunately, you could get some Faraday pouches that block signals. All you have to do then is store your hardware wallets at safe locations.
Most minimalist wallets have RFID protection these days. They allow you to take your Tangem Notes (or even your hardware wallet) on you without worry, save for direct assault. Where physical transportation of your wallets is impossible, there are always other options.
I still have assets on my Ledger because Tangem and Trezor don't support them. But, I have already spread out my risks.
