Let’s Debunk Mobile Crypto Mining

Cryptocurrency mining may seem attractive to those looking to get some of that magical internet money. But as ASIC took over the proof of work mining, while staking kept getting more expensive, people started to look towards mobile crypto mining.

Sure, mobile mining does sound attractive, considering you only have to use your mobile device for it. And as mobile devices started being used more and more to access the internet, mobile mining opportunities also increased.

But are they for real? Let’s see.

The concept of mobile mining explained

The concept of mobile cryptocurrency mining refers to mining for cryptocurrency directly from a mobile device.

Let’s see how proof-of-work and proof-of-stake apply.

Mobile Proof-of-Work

For proof-of-work mining, the mobile device has to solve the equation as fast as possible, using as much computation power as possible. 

Considering that most of the proof-of-work cryptocurrencies have dedicated ASIC devices for mining, not even the most performant smartphone would do much. 

Let’s take an iPhone 12Pro Max, for example, that is supposed to have a 3.1 GHz frequency hexa-core processor. Do you think it would do well in POW?  

Well, not really. 

At the end of the day, Apple does not build their devices for mining, so the 12Pro Max may only reach around 100 H/s. On the other hand, dedicated mining hardware such as an Antminer R4 has a hash rate of  8.6 TH/s.

At this rate, any non-specialized mobile hardware may get to confirm a transaction only out of sheer luck.

Mobile Proof-of-Stake

Proof-of-stake might be more suitable for a mobile phone. If you delegate your stake to a node, you may use any kind of device as you don’t need much computational power.

However, actively mining on a PoS cryptocurrency would imply opening up a node.

If you decide to open up a node and confirm transactions on your own, a decent smartphone would do. 

However, you might need some advanced technical skills to set up a node on your mobile device. You may even find yourself in a situation where you have to adapt the staking software to your mobile device.

You can check on Tezos’ requirements for a node to understand what that would imply.

Besides technicalities, you still need to fulfill some staking requirements to open up a node, which may vary from one cryptocurrency to another. Those requirements usually refer to the minimum amount of funds staked and getting an endorsement.

Is Bitcoin mining on smartphones possible?

Bitcoin mining on your phone is possible. There are various apps that facilitate Bitcoin mining on Android.

But is it worth it? Not a chance!

Again, you are competing against specialized hardware.

You will only overclock your phone continuously and burn out the device. The phone will stay connected and draw as much energy as it can in order to run its computational power at full speed and it still won’t be anywhere near having a slight chance against an ASIC.

You can play around with a mining calculator and see what your profitability would be.

By the way, take into consideration that you have to include the cost of replacing your phone after mining for only one month.

But there is of course the illegal way, which is employed by some bad actors. They infect numerous mobile devices with malicious bitcoin mining software. This way, they get a lot of distributed computational power from many mobile devices.

But as blockchain technology evolves, we do hope those guys will be rooted out as soon as possible.

Popular mobile mining apps

There are many apps that offer all sorts of mining opportunities for bitcoin and altcoins

MinerGate 

Miner gate is an android app that offers proof of work mining for android devices. 

It indeed does what it says it does. 

However, we’ve found TechWizTime’s experiment in which he mined Monero with three OnePlus 5T phones, a Xiaomi Redmi 5 Plus, a Bluboo S8 Plus, a Lenovo Tab4 8 Plus Tablet, and a Umidigi S2 Android Smartphone. 

With this setup, he got 110 h/s and the mining calculator showed he can earn around 78 cents per week.

Adding the cost of electricity and replacing burned devices, it sure sounds like a “deal”.

Electronium

Electronium promises to be a lightweight cryptocurrency that can be mined from a mobile device.

At first, it employed a public GPU based proof-of-work mining system. But as time passed, GPU mining became private, while the general public could get ETN only through cloud mining and plain app rewards.

Today, anyone can go forward and download the app on their phone and check in every 7 days to reset the mining period. It’s basically an airdrop that pours pennies at you for having the app installed.

Sweatcoin

With the emergence of fitness apps and steps tracking apps, the crypto world found a way to imagine new consensus protocols based on them

It’s not the only cryptocurrency that does this, but we will only refer to Sweatcoin. It is basically a kind of “proof-of-activity” cryptocurrency that rewards you with their token for walking.

You may earn at best 20 SWC for 20,000 steps per day.

As the token is not traded on any exchange, its value ($.05 USD) can only be derived in relation to the rewards showcased on the app.

There is no way you can claim your funds other than claiming a top prize. In exchange for 20,000 Sweatcoins, you can receive $1,000 via PayPal or a new iPhone (only once though). Also, the app has a sort of marketplace from which you can buy different types of subscriptions and other rewards.

As a crypto-earning app, it doesn’t really sound that great. But as a fitness app, it sounds really nice. You can focus on getting regular daily exercise and get some small rewards from time to time.

As for that $1,000 prize, you would most likely qualify for that after years of usage.

How about simulated mining?

Besides regular mining, there is also simulated mobile mining, which is more of an airdrop.

First, simulated mining is not real mining, as understood by the common definition. It does not employ any resources and does not confirm transactions in any way.

Users receive funds for performing an action like checking in after a period of time.

We’ve mentioned already that Electroneum is distributing their cryptocurrency through an airdrop-like app, and that includes it in this category as well.

Besides Electroneum, the Pi network project has got a lot of traction through its mobile simulated mining. 

Pi network

Pi Network is one of the most successful projects that have implemented simulated mining and gained traction. It has surpassed 9.5M users (as of November 2020), and is currently working on the testnet. 

The Pi network launched their mobile mining app as a token distribution tool.

While the simulated mining has no other role than distributing tokens to the community, the developers do use it as a test ground to see how a Byzantine Fault Tolerance protocol would apply.

Once it reaches the mainnet, the team plans to move to a BFT consensus that would require a general consensus of the network over transactions instead of mining.

One thing to mention is that the mining software, as explained in the whitepaper and launched for the testnet, only works on desktop. If that goes on the mainnet, will Pi really be mineable from a mobile device?

Key takeaways

• The concept of mobile cryptocurrency mining refers to mining for cryptocurrency directly from a mobile device.
• Proof-of-work mining can be done through mobile devices with dedicated apps, but is unlikely to be profitable. On the other hand, a smartphone could handle a proof-of-stake node as it won’t require much computing power, but might require advanced technical skills and specific conditions.
• Bitcoin mining on your phone is certainly possible. But another certain thing is that it will only lead to you burning up your phone without getting a profit.
• Some mobile crypto apps advertise themselves as being game-changers. But the more you get into them, the more flaws you find. Do your own research thoroughly before deciding to install any crypto app. 
• Simulated mobile mining works like an airdrop. It does not confirm transactions. But it can be used to understand the dynamic of a community.

* The information in this article and the links provided are for general information purposes only and should not constitute any financial or investment advice. We advise you to do your own research or consult a professional before making financial decisions. Please acknowledge that we are not responsible for any loss caused by any information present on this website.