The new COLDCARD improves on the Mk4 by adding a QWERTY keyboard, a large LCD screen and a QR code scanner.
Bitcoin hardware company Coinkite is releasing a new high-end COLDCARD, featuring a full QWERTY keyboard, larger LCD screen, and QR code scanner. The COLDCARD Q1 will also be battery powered, eliminating the need to connect the device to a power outlet or computer.
“We always wanted to create a QWERTY device for fast passphrase input with battery power,” Coinkite founder NVK told Bitcoin Magazine. “We’ve been toying with the QR idea for years, and finally found a safe way to do QR scanners. I’m very excited about this, we think it’s the ultimate hardware wallet.”
The COLDCARD Q1 resembles the historic BlackBerry. A stealthy gray body houses the secure elements introduced with the Mk4, which launched last year. The new device also borrows other features from the Mk4, including NFC compatibility, USB virtual disk mode, USB-C connector, activity lights for USB and SD card, and 120 megahertz (MHz) processor speed. ). However, the Q1 goes one step further than the Mk4 by adding a second SD card slot, a four times larger LCD screen, the ability to use batteries for power, a QR code scanner with LED lighting and advanced scanning algorithms, and the massive 50-key QWERTY keyboard. It also includes a flashlight.
The Q1’s QR scanner sits on top of the unit and is connected to the COLDCARD internally using a 2-wire serial port. According to Coinkite, this ensures “there is less risk of the scanned data doing more than it appears”.
“Your bitcoin deposit address or other data is decoded by this dedicated module which is very good at reading QR codes in all lighting conditions, and also includes a super bright LED to light up your cave on top of the mountain !Think of a highly optimized grocery scanner, not the cell phone camera that struggles to read a QR”, by Coinkite Docs.
The new COLDCARD Q1 is available in presalebut its launch data remains to be determined.