Ellipal Wallet review – D1rty Dan

The other method of receiving is directly from the Ellipal App on your mobile device. It operates the same way in that you are able to tap the coin’s QR icon from your account, and select the receive button to display the QR code and address. The Ellipal App also includes a copy account address so that you can paste your receiving address safely without creating typos.

Opinion: I find the ability to receive crypto on both the wallet and app to be useful. In the real world, I won’t always be carrying my cold storage wallet so if I want to receive payments the app itself is all I need to do that. I tested receiving some Crypto and it worked marvelously without issue.

Sending transactions with the Ellipal wallet is done by the signing mechanism which is the root use case for the device. Outgoing transactions are initiated on the Ellipal app through your mobile device. You start by selecting the crypto you wish to send, the amount, the Gas/Mining fee you wish to allow, the recipient’s address with a scanned QR code or manual entry (which they do have a built in contacts list for) and then finish by pressing the submit button.

The App will then ask you to sign the transaction. To perform this action, you open your Ellipal Wallet device and select the “sign” button for the crypto you are transacting. It prompts you for a password (which you initially created). You are then able to scan the QR code on your mobile device with the wallet. After confirming the QR code on the wallet, you then have to scan the signed QR code with the app from the wallet. After that, your transaction is processed and sent.

Opinion: Signing the transactions was very easy, and was very convenient. I can see myself doing this in the real world more often than not without an issue. It was fast and responsive. Carrying a second device for cold storage transactions around isn’t ideal for most normal people, but for people in the crypto space, this is not a regular issue. Most people will use this as a form of cold storage (as opposed to the Ledger and Trezor) so it makes a lot of sense to have this wallet. I find it’s easier to sign transactions with this device than using something like a Ledger.

If you’re going to be out in the real world using this wallet, make sure you have somewhere safe to keep it with you. I try to envision what the future holds for cryptocurrency and making these sorts of transactions on a daily basis, sometimes multiple times a day. For someone like me, this is doable. Some others may not agree.

One critique I have is that sending a small amount of Ethereum would not work. I had to have at least $40 dollars worth to transact with. Every time I hit the submit button it wouldn’t take because the amount I was sending was too low. This may have just been a situation with me though.

Overall Opinion

As someone who is a technology freak, an IT person and a crypto adopter/believer, I love this wallet. I liken crypto to real world situations as best I can. For storing currency, I like to think in terms of:

– Savings account — Long term holds of crypto investments that won’t be transacted with often, planned investments

– Checking account — Larger purchases/transactions with crypto that will be done off and on depending, planned purchases or transactions (don’t forget your checkbook type situations)

– Cash on hand — Small, everyday purchase/transaction with crypto, unplanned regular purchases or transactions

The Ellipal wallet falls into the category of Checking account for me, but can also be used as a cash on hand type of wallet as well, because of how easy it is to perform quickly signed transactions. Fortunately, its security features and tamper resistance also make it ideal as a cold storage (Savings) wallet too.

The more complicated the device is, the less I will use it and that holds true for all technology with anyone. If I am to be my own bank, the safest and easiest storage is also one I will find myself using often because of how simple it is. I was skeptical of the wallet at first, but by the end of this review, I’ve been sold on it.