Doug Miller of KeepKey Bitcoin Wallet on SegWit and New Features
KeepKey is one of the top Bitcoin Hardware Wallets in the industry right now. I recently had the opportunity to have a hands-on experience with one, as well as speak to Doug Miller of KeepKey. KeepKey is a very solidly-built wallet with a large, very easy to read screen. A lot of attention to detail has been done both with the Bitcoin Wallet and the app.
Disclosure: KeepKey provided KeepKey wallet to review.
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The KeepKey ships in a shrink wrapped box with tamper-evident stickers on it. This extra bit helps alleviate the worry that your device could have been tampered with en-route. The KeepKey comes with a USB cable, a card to write your seed on, a sleeve for your seed card, and a basic “getting started” guide.
Setup is very simple with a walk through demo on KeepKey.com. Both their app and firmware are open source, so you can compile and install yourself or customize. They also use the Trezor source code, and as they state it is “market proven.” This array of features and security should definitely give the user peace of mind.
When the KeepKey first debuted, it was $249 USD, which was steep for many users. KeepKey recently dropped the price to $99 to allow more people access to the wallet. This step, along with continued work on all the different parts of their ecosystem from hardware to software and beyond, makes it a good buy.
The KeepKey team never lets up either. They are constantly working to improve their products and fulfill customer needs. Doug Miller the head of Business Development went over some to them with us.
Scott Fargo (SF): Could you tell me what are some of the current updates and projects you are working on for KeepKey?
Doug Miller: We have gotten a lot of requests about how to use KeepKey with a mobile device. We think (for security) it is a very bad practice to carry around your hardware wallet when your out and about. Anyone who see’s it knows immediately you have enough funds to warrant a hardware security device. I tell people: “Just because you can put a million dollars worth of bitcoin in your pocket, doesn’t mean you should”. That said, we have come up with a really slick way to make KeepKey mobile, without having to tote a hardware wallet around with you. This new feature will be announced very soon.
SF: People have asked if you are going to have Ethereum support that is easy to setup, is that close or done now?
DM: We get this question a lot. Right now, it is not one of our priorities. That doesn’t mean it won’t happen, though, just not likely in the next few months.
Bitcoin Block Size: KeepKey is Ready for Any BIP
SF: How has the blocksize argument affected any of your future moves?
DM: It hasn’t affected any of our plans other than us making sure that whatever does happen, KeepKey will still be working for our end customers.
SF: Will SegWit mean any changes to how the KeepKey wallet works and will it be difficult on your end to implement?
DM: The changes required will be minimal to make KeepKey support SegWit. And when it does, it will improve the device’s performance.
SF: What key features do you feel sets KeepKey apart from the competition?
DM: There are 4 main things a hardware wallet should do: generate private keys, store them securely, sign transactions, and device recovery incase it is lost. On each of these 4 things, KeepKey is the most secure. It is also the easiest to use: even a bitcoin novice can protect their wealth.
We also have some of the best customer service in the industry. Call us during business hours and you can actually speak with someone. We also have a 30-day money back guarantee, and 2 year warranty. We have a really great affiliate network and re-seller program. Anyone that is interested should contact us at support@keepkey.com.
We have launched into over 10 countries and gaining more partnerships with both small companies and Enterprise Corporations, our platform we are building out is going to help many individuals and Corporations with the Blockchain Technology, we are excited.
Thank you, Doug, for your time. As you can see, KeepKey not only is a solid unit; it also has an excellent team behind it always looking forward to the future. Different uses, users and changes to the Bitcoin protocol taken into account.
The things I like about the KeepKey are the ease of use and solidly built casing. But what really shines is the very large and bright screen. Even people who have a hard time reading print or need bifocals will have no issues. I would like to see a case for the actual unit itself, though. The casing and screen are very tough, but if you have to move it around often or have it stashed in a sub-optimal environment, a protective case would be a help. Overall, this is another great Bitcoin wallet in the industry. Their hard work in making this simple and effective wallet anyone can use and feel secure with has paid off in aces.
What are your thoughts on the KeepKey Bitcoin wallet? Do you own one?
Image Sources courtesy of News.Bitcoin.com, KeepKey.
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