Cobo vault review

Investing in crypto currency is no longer an alien concept and thousands of geeks with penchant for newer means of investment are opting for it. When you buy or sell crypto currencies and store them, choosing a crypto wallet becomes necessary. It is better to have a personal wallet than relying on the storage offered by the crypto exchanges- more so if you are thinking of long term investment and trading in this sector. You may opt for paper and mobile crypto wallets but a hardware wallet offers more safety and flexibility of usage, as it is. There are quite a handful of hardware crypto wallets that you can buy nowadays. One worthy contender is the Cobo Vault.

What is it?

It is a device that lets you buy, sell or store crypto currencies in a secure way. This is however, not like any run of the mill hardware wallet. There are no USB connectors or USB ports in it, unlike the devices from stables of Trezor and Ledger etc. The price tag of $479 may steep but the device is actually worth it. There are just 2 inputs- the touch screen and a camera. The output is the screen. Its body is made with aerospace metal and aluminum alloy which make sit near immune to damages. You have to store the device and its battery separately when dissembling it.

The box content

When you buy the Cobo Vault, this is what you find inside the box:

1. Cobo Vault Hardware Wallet with touch screen
2. The actual Cobo “Vault”
3. one Charging Dock
4. one Removable 1540 mAH Battery
5. Steel Tiles Recovery Seed Phrase
6. one Instruction Booklet
7. one Small Screwdriver
8. one USB-C Cable
9. Mnemonic Steel made Recovery Seed Device

The box is quite heavy and every component is built solid-giving a reassuring feeling every time you open it.

Setting the device up

From the time you set it up, you will realize why the Cobo Vault is different from typical crypto hardware wallets. It lacks the commonly used connections like Bluetooth, USB, WiFi, NFC and Cellular tech. So, this stays off the grid at all times-which is ideal for security aware users. To set it up and use afterwards, you need to use QR codes. Interestingly, the device has a 5-MP lens camera to scan the QR codes in the company website. The companion app has to be used too to make any transaction.

Setting it up is no cakewalk and the casual users may find the process tedious. However, security wise it has no match. These are the steps that you have to follow to initialize this device:

1. At first, you need to download “Cobo” mobile app.
2. Then switch on the Cobo Vault device.
3. Run the recovery seed phrase method next. Write it down and then verify using the device’s touch screen.
4. Now, set a custom passphrase that meets its stringent requirements.
5. Next, scan QR code in the brand website for firmware authentication.
6. After the authentication is over, scan one dynamic QR code using companion mobile app for making transactions.
7. Receiving payment on the device is simple. You need to create QR code and the sender should scan it to initiate.

While the hardware wallet contains private keys, you cannot use it alone to make transactions as it is offline by nature. You need to use it alongside the Cobo Vault app. This mobile app has no private keys in it. So, losing the phone will not affect your crypto assets at all.

A robust crypto wallet

The crypto hardware wallets are all built rugged but the Cobo Vault sets the bar even higher. It is not just shock and water resistant. The device comes with an embedded “Self-Destruct” mechanism. It lacks ports so hacking using wire or wireless protocols is not possible. However, the device cannot be physically tampered too! If anyone tries to do that and the screen gets damaged or any part gets dented, it will get wiped automatically. If any such mishap happens, the only thing you can do is using the stainless steel recovery seeds. In other words, it is the Fort-Knox, in crypto wallet realm!

Coin support

Compared to the segment rivals, the Cobo Vault lags a little in coin support. However, you will find support for most popular crypto currencies including the likes of ETH, BCH, BTC, Eos, and LTC.  The company says more coins will be supported in future.

Should you buy it?

There are brands in every industry that make products for a specific niche of buyers. In Smartphone section it is Apple and in vehicle industry- Tesla is a good example. In crypto hardware segment- you will be hard pressed to find another contender that can come close to the Cobo vault-let alone surpass it! In terms of durability and hacking proof prowess- it is miles ahead of any other hardware wallet. The military grade metal based rugged body, lack of any physical ports, and unique self destructing mechanism makes it way more secure and durable than anything else in the market. The build quality of every single component in the box inspires confidence.

Does that mean you should buy this crypto wallet right away! Well, for the majority of crypto currency users and investors, the answer is likely to be no! There are some major usability issues that are hard to overlook- for the regular crypto users.

First of all, setting the device up is tedious and needs more time than what you need with most other contenders. Receiving payment is not hard but if you want to send payment that proves to be time consuming too. This makes it hard to recommend for frequent usage.

As of now, it supports only 8 types of coins which can deter some users. While the company says the number of supported coins will go up, it may not be on levels of the rivals that offer support for 1000+ crypto currencies.

Finally, the price tag makes it out of bonus for the beginners or casual crypto users. They can find cheaper wallets with decent features and security.

So, the Cobo Vault is ideal only for a specific niche of users. Those with deep pockets and looking for a very robust and secure device that will be used sparingly cannot go wrong with it!