Custom URLs: Wallet Comparison

Our impressions

Trezor Model One

Keystone 3 Pro

Pros

Small form factor and very portable
Excellent value at an affordable price point

Supports 3 concurrent seed phrases
Convenient user experience with the huge touchscreen
Completely autonomous device with long lasting battery lifetime (should be at least 100+ hours in sleep mode when using the device a couple times per day, 18+ months when turned off)
Easy process for online Device Verification

Cons

MicroUSB in this day and age is quite outdated, but still connects to USB-A or newer USB-C ports
Requires constant USB connection to operate
Limitations compared to Trezor Model T
- Supports fewer coins and misses support for e.g.: XRP, ADA (Cardano), XMR (Monero)
- Button input can be cumbersome compared to the touchscreen of the Model T
Key extraction vulnerability (if an attacker with the right tools and knowledge has physical access to the hardware wallet)

The airgapped QR code paradigm requires a camera on the paired device for certain interactions
We love their dedication to open source “EVERY SINGLE LINE” of code they write, including their hardware designs. As long as they do not deliver on their promise, it sadly still is a closed source product.

Verdict

Despite being the very first hardware wallet product, with it’s debut in 2014, the Trezor Model One is still one of the best hardware wallets. It has a very attractive price point, while providing excellent value and functionality.

Make sure to use a passphrase if you are worried about key extraction attacks. Read more about the vulnerability

The Keystone 3 Pro is a device that we can see in a “broad adoption of everyday Crypto financial transactions” scenario. It is a fully air-gapped, autonomous device that has great battery life with an easy to use interface on a convenient 4-inch touchscreen. We would add it to our everyday carry in an instant, in a world where QR code based Crypto payments are available at every shop and venue.

Disclaimer: Our impressions are based on a compilation of factors tailored to the average user’s perspective. It is also important to note that whether a feature is a “pro” or “con” can depend on your situation and preferences. What may be an advantage in one scenario could be a challenge in another, and vice versa. Therefore, while reviewing these points, it’s essential to consider your unique requirements and circumstances when making decisions. This list aims to provide an idea of what to anticipate, but it is not the ultimate guide to determining whether something will work for you or not.

Key features

Trezor Model One

Keystone 3 Pro

Release year

2014

2023

Supported coins

Supports multiple coins, Bitcoin-only mode available

BTC, ETH, LTC, XLM , DOGE, DASH, ZEC, NEM,
and a thousand others. See a full list at trezor.io/coins

Supports multiple coins

5000+ Coins Supported (Bitcoin & EVM chains)

Bitcoin-only Firmware is supposedly in the works, with an estimated release date some time before the next Bitcoin halving
Source: Comment on reddit.com

Open source

Firmware
Companion software

Planned

The Keystone team is working on also open sourcing “EVERY SINGLE LINE of code we’ve written”, including their hardware design, with an announced release date in November 2023. The announcement is worded in a way that it leaves some room of what we really can expect to be released and if they can meet their own release date.
Source: Official blog post concerning Open Source

As the focus of the Keystone 3 series is on 3rd party app compatibility the previous companion software will be faded out in the future.
Source: second hand user comment on reddit.com

Seedphrase support

BIP-39 (Mnemonic phrase)
Passphrase

BIP-39 (Mnemonic phrase)
SLIP-39 (Shamir backup)
Passphrase
Multiple seedphrases on one device

Security protections

On device PIN entry
Factory reset with wrong PIN
Factory reset with decoy PIN
On device recovery

Secure element
On device PIN entry
Factory reset with wrong PIN
On device passphrase entry
On device recovery
Fingerprint sensor
Air-gapped QR code

Triple Secure Element Chips
USB & MicroSD Card Firmware Upgrading
PCI Anti-tamper Feature

Platform compatibility

Windows
macOS
Linux
Android
ChromeOS

Chrome OS is not officially supported and relies on WebUSB in the Chrome browser. This means that, i.e., it’s not possible to set up a freshly unboxed Trezor One, you need to perform the first-time firmware installation on a PC or Mac.