New smartphones are constantly popping up, but where all other manufacturers are fighting with better screens and cameras, the former giant in smartphones, HTC, has chosen to go a completely different way – they are committed to connecting blockchain with their latest smartphone, Exodus 1.
I’m really wondering what the hell we need a ‘blockchain mobile’ for, and if it’s not really a question of making a product that’s part of last year’s hype.
So let us take a look at what Exodus 1 has to offer, that the other smartphones on the market do not.
Firstly, there is a so-called ‘secure enclave’ on the mobile. That should be a locked area protected against Android OS, so even the operating system on the mobile cannot change it. The areas then contain the keys to all crypto, whether it’s currencies or so-called non-fungible tokens (NFT), and HTC also dreams that it will be the area where all your digital data will be saved.
Another thing that HTC has introduced with Exodus 1 is a “Social Key Recovery” feature that should ensure that if you’ve forgotten your access keys or lost your phone, you can easily and securely restore your lost keys. At the same time, the feature also assures that HTC does not store its keys in a single central location.
This feature works by you selecting a few trusted people, each of which must download a key administration app. Then your data is divided using a confidential algorithm and sent to the trusted people. Through the same system you can then recreate the keys again.
Now, HTC will move on with Exodus 1 and have invited cryptographers and developers from all over the world to become part of the Exodus community and help optimize the secure enclave.
And so we are back to my starting point – do we need a blockchain smartphone? Or is it just a way for HTC to try to find a niche and come back as a significant player in the smartphone market?
Today, the market is dominated by the three major players on the market, Samsung, Huawei and Apple. They are the ones who drives the development, and they are the ones with the most significant market shares. Now, the former giant in the smartphone market, HTC, can look at OnePlus and Xiaomi, who are rapidly gaining ground on the market, while another former giant in mobile phones, Nokia, is also rapidly on its way back.
So is it that HTC desperately are looking for something that can be theirs, which can separate them from the crowd?
I seriously doubt that there is a real need for a ‘blockchain smartphone’, but maybe the technology can be interesting in the long run. But now we will have to see. In December, HTC will send mobile phones to those who join the early access program, and then we’ll see what it’s all about.
Some of the specifications in the phone is a IP68-certification and a quite reasonable battery on 3,500 mAh – oh, and you can only buy the phone for Bitcoins and Etherium.
You can pre-order your mobile via this link.
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