ADA, Cardano's coin is one of the most popular cryptocurrencies ever. Due to this popularity, it's even more important to be careful with your coins. A hardware wallet is the best way to do this.
There are various types of wallets, but we recommend you use a hardware wallet, because this is the safest option. There are also various manufacturers of hardware wallets, but don't let this unnerve you. It's fairly simple, because they all have a few things in common:
- They're physical devices, like a USB stick
- The access code (private key) is generated offline.
The private key will not be shared via the internet, so hackers cannot access your ADA.
What can you do with a Cardano (ADA) hardware wallet?
Regardless which brand of hardware wallet you have, they all provide safe storage of your coins.
But you can do even more using a hardware wallet, especially when it comes to Cardano. You can connect some wallets to the software of Cardano to stake coins. This means that you fix ADA on the blockchain, for which you receive a reward. A kind of interest on your wallet, which a normal bank doesn't give you!
We call these devices wallets. But technically, you don't really store your ADA on a wallet. You should rather see your hardware wallet like the access to your bank account. It's like an admission ticket to show that the ADA are truly yours.
You use this access ticket to prove to the network that you are authorised to send your ADA.
Why a hardware wallet is the safest option
You should treat your hardware wallet like the PIN code and debit card of your bank account.
What happens if someone else gets a hold of both of these? Then you can say goodbye to your money. The same goes for the access code to your ADA. And, contrary to a bank, there is no customer service you can call when that happens. When you have a hardware wallet, you yourself are the bank.
That's why it's so important to store your access code offline, just like a PIN code. You don't store that on your phone either, you don't text it to anyone and you don't take a screenshot of it. No one can know your PIN code except you.
You store your PIN code offline, in your head. This is the main difference between a hardware wallet and other types of wallets. A hardware wallet stores your coins offline, where no hacker can reach them. Other types of wallets are always connected to the internet.
But which hardware should you choose to secure, manage and stake your ADA?
