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The HTC Exodus 1 is a blockchain phone you can only buy with cryptocurrency

Preorders for the HTC Exodus 1 are now open, with an expected ship date in December.

Gordon Gottsegen CNET contributor
Gordon Gottsegen is a tech writer who has experience working at publications like Wired. He loves testing out new gadgets and complaining about them. He is the ghost of all failed Kickstarters.
Gordon Gottsegen
2 min read
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The HTC Exodus 1 is a phone built for housing your crypto.

HTC

HTC just launched its early access period for the HTC Exodus 1, the company's first blockchain phone.

What does a "blockchain phone" even mean? Well, according to HTC, it's called that because it's blockchain-encrypted, and dedicated to security and decentralized applications. The phone also acts as its own blockchain node (you can read more about how blockchain works in this CNET explainer).

The HTC Exodus 1 provides a safe place to store the keys to your cryptocurrency . The "secure enclave" -- as HTC calls it -- is protected from the rest of the phone and its Android OS. There's also a Social Key Recovery mechanism, which lets you pick a few trustworthy contacts to hold a portion of your crypto keys, so you can get access to your cryptocurrency if your phone is lost or stolen or if you forget your info.

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The HTC Exodus 1.

HTC

Specs for the phone include:

  • 6-inch QHD+ display with 18:9 aspect ratio
  • Android Oreo
  • 6GB of RAM
  • 126GB of internal storage
  • Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 processor
  • 16-megapixel dual rear camera
  • 8-megapixel dual front camera
  • 3,500mAh battery
  • IP68 waterproof rating

Because this is a cryptocurrency-centric phone, you can only buy it with Bitcoin or Ethereum. It costs 0.15 BTC or 4.78 ETH, which is about $960, £740 or AU$1,355. That puts it in the price range of an iPhone XS or Samsung Galaxy Note 9, but you're paying for the security of blockchain (and the specs look pretty good on paper, too).

You can preorder the HTC Exodus 1 on the HTC Exodus website. The phone is available in 34 countries including the US, UK, Taiwan, Singapore, New Zealand, Norway and various European countries. It's expected to ship in December.

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