KeepKey specifications
What’s in the box?
KeepKey
A woven nylon USB cable
Recovery sentence backup card
KeepKey overview
The KeepKey has a robust design with anodized aluminum on its backside, making it portable and easy to hold.
One of the main innovations of the Keepkey is its native integration with web-based trading platform ShapeShift. It’s worth noting that while the KeepKey has the deepest integration with ShapeShift, you can still use it with other wallet software.
The initial setup is straightforward and easy to follow. Throughout our testing, we’ve had some issues with pairing the device with ShapeShift. The device kept dropping the connection, but a few restarts solved the issue.
While the native integration with ShapeShift is a significant feature of the KeepKey, it has its downsides. If you’d like to buy or exchange assets on Shapeshift, you’ll need to create an account and do KYC verification. However, if you only wish to send and receive cryptocurrencies, you only need to create an account with an email address. If you don’t want to create a Shapeshift account at all, you can either use the KeepKey Client browser extension for some basic functionality or other crypto wallet software.
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KeepKey pros and cons
Pros
Affordable price.
Portable.
Cons
ShapeShift requires you to create an account.
Limited mobile support.
It supports fewer coins than its competitors.
KeepKey pricing
As of January 2020, the KeepKey is sold for $49.
It is advised to always buy hardware wallets directly from the manufacturer. Buying second-hand hardware wallets poses the risk of the private keys being compromised. When you buy the device from ShapeShift, it comes with a holographic seal.
Closing thoughts
KeepKey is a hardware wallet made by the company with the same name, which was acquired by web-based trading platform ShapeShift in 2017. As such, the main feature of the KeepKey is its integration with ShapeShift. So, those who don’t want to use ShapeShift at all might be better suited to look for other hardware wallet solutions.
In summary, the KeepKey is a well-designed, user-friendly wallet with some compatibility limitations, but suitable for beginners.