Blog posts, Product | 06/20/2016
Ledger Nano S: secure multi-currency hardware wallet
Bitcoin Blockchain Products SecurityLedger Nano S is a secure Bitcoin and Ethereum hardware wallet. It connects to any computer through USB and embeds a built-in OLED display to double-check and confirm each transaction with a single tap on its side buttons.
It is available for the price of 79 EUR (+VAT) and is fully compatible with the previous generation of Ledger products if you want to import an existing account.
Main features
- Cryptographic secrets protected by a secure chip
- Bitcoin and Ethereum support (Open Source apps)
- Confirmation of transactions on the embedded screen
- Built-in 4 digit PIN security lock
- Built-in onboarding (seed generation and recovery)
- BIP39 seed (12/18/24 words), easy backup and restoration
- Multi-apps support: FIDO U2F, GPG, SSH…
- USB connectivity
- Foldable and compact casing
- Compatible with Ledger Wallet Bitcoin Chrome application and Ledger Wallet Ethereum Chrome application
Features with Firmware 1.2
To unlock these features, it is necessary to install the firmware 1.2.
- Passphrase support for plausible deniability or seed backup protection (compatible with BIP39)
- Alternative duress PIN
- Shuffle PIN option
- Token & basic contract support (data field) for Ethereum
- MyEtherWallet integration on Chrome and Opera without third party extensions
- Support for GreenAddress & Greenbits (Android, desktop coming soon)
- Litecoin support
- Ledger Manager: application & firmware updates
Nano S is architectured around the BOLOS platform, a powerful and flexible Operating System allowing the secure execution of multiple Open Source applications in full isolation.
>> Order now your Ledger Nano S
Why the need for a hardware wallet?
If you are not familiar with the notion of hardware wallets, you may wonder what the advantages are versus a paper wallet or an encrypted private key on a computer.
The main principle behind hardware wallets is to provide full isolation between the cryptographic secrets (private keys) and your easy to hack computer or smartphone. Vulnerabilities of modern PCs and smartphones are well known, and if you keep your private keys there (private key = your bitcoins) it’s just a matter of time before you’ll get hacked and lose everything.
A paper wallet may be secure, but only until you want to use your funds, requiring importing your private keys on your computer. And if you think a password encrypting your keys is enough, a malware is smart enough to wait for the inevitable decryption before sweeping your funds.
Hardware wallets are convenient, affordable, portable and backed up by a paper wallet allowing easy recovery in case of loss. If you have any significant amount of bitcoins, using a hardware wallet should be a no brainer.
Ledger Wallet Chrome applications
Nano S comes with a set of Chrome applications to manage your cryptocurrency wallets. The Bitcoin Chrome app is an award winning wallet featuring multi-accounts and rich settings.
In order to manage ethers (the cryptocurrency from the Ethereum network), we have launched a dedicated Chrome app, functioning on the same principles as the Bitcoin one. You can have different accounts and securely receive or send ETH/ETC from your Nano S.
The Ledger Manager is a tool to update your firmware and install new applications on your Nano S.
FIDO U2F authenticator
Nano S is running a certified U2F app and can be used as a second factor security key for Google, Github, Dropbox and other compatible services.
This 2FA mechanism replaces SMS or OTP codes such as Google Authenticators or Authy, and is not only much more secure but also really practical to use.
Open Source
All apps running on Nano S are Open Source. You can audit, review or contribute to the code. Here is the full list of available Nano S and Chrome apps:
Nano S embedded apps
Chrome applications
Nano S for developers
If you are a developer, you can build your own apps for Nano S. Our Ledger Blue SDK is fully compatible with Nano S (UI mechanisms aside) and you can leverage our development tools to start experimenting.