Well, it's official. I own Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Litecoin. I was hesitant at first, but was overwhelmed by the potential upside to the relative downside. Here's a few observations from someone just starting out, if you're looking to do the same.
Here are a few simple tips when buying on coinbase.com
You will need to connect a credit card (that allows purchase of bitcoin) or a bank account. I was not able to purchase with my chase credit card, so I had to connect my bank account and wait about a week for the coins to be deposited into my coinbase.com wallet.
Depending on network traffic, there is an increased fee associated with transferring money OUT of coinbase. It cost me $11 to transfer $100 USD in BTC over to Bittrex. For this reason alone, I would recommend buying Ethereum (ETH). Ethereum cost me $0.14 to transfer $300+ of Ethereum out of coinbase. It's one reason I believe Ethereum will overtake Bitcoin.
Coinbase locks in your purchase at the time the order is completed. So even though I bought 1 ETH at $290, it was still worth $340 a week later when I got it.
These wallet keys make me nervous, but I haven't had any problems yet while transferring -- just make sure you transfer like currency to like currency wallets or your money will be lost.
Finally, my last pointer would be to buy no less than $200 worth of any one crypto because you will pay a minimum $2.99 fee to buy. That can mean 1.5% to the "house", or it can mean substantially more (as a percentage) in smaller deposits.
Here's a screenshot of coinbase and how you set up your first "buy":
Other than the long wait times, which I find extremely annoying, the experience was relatively painless. #takemymoney
