So far in this series of articles, I have covered getting paid in crypto while you browse the web using Brave browser and getting started with Alien Worlds; a free-to-play digital card-game which occasionally pays out random NFT prizes. I've also covered the process of trading in your mined TLM virtual ore for other crypto or actual cash.
Today, let's look at possible ways to earn Bitcoin. I found this video on YouTube from Guy at the Coin Bureau channel. He suggests avoiding mobile games and a few other things... well watch the video. I wanted to know if the things suggested in the video would apply to people in the UK and if they were really genuine. After all, if it sounds too good to be true...
Anyway I watched the video and then looked into each suggestion. Here's what I found
The Fold App.
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This appears to be a cash-back rewards site where the cash-back comes in the form of bitcoin. There appear to be two different levels of membership - 'Premium' or 'Intro'. Premium costs $150 per year but has no activation fee. Intro on the other hand has no annual fee but a $21 'activation' fee. It may be that I've got the wrong end of the stick on this one and the app might be free to use and these costs only apply to obtaining a visa card from Fold. As a non-US dweller though the 3% international transaction fee on both would also have me questioning it's usefulness to people in the UK. They also state the cards are only for US residents. Reviews also suggest the reward game may only apply if you spend $100 in a transaction and the only UK store where you could use this app is Starbucks. I know Starbucks might not be the cheapest coffee but I doubt I'll ever spend $100 in there, so for now I'm ignoring this one.
Comments check
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At this point I checked the video comments and to be fair Guy points out that the Fold app and Lolli are for US residents. He also states that you now have to go on a waiting list to be a part of Coinbase Earn. I had a look at this to see if that was worth the effort and the current list of learn to earn opportunities added up to $31. I would say this puts it in the further research pile. A free $31 is enough to cover an indie game title or two on Steam or some other game crypto to get you started on Enj games or similar. It all boils down to whether or not there's a buy-in transfer required and the size of that waiting list.
Crypto.com Card
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This appears to be an app with a linked pre-payment card. This is like a debit card but you load it with money by transferring funds to it. A good idea if you shop online as having your credentials stolen from a hacked shopping site should mean the hackers are unable to spend any more of your money than you have pre-loaded onto the card. However I am discovering that user feedback is essential when considering crypto services and I have read a lot of very negative reviews about crypto.com on the Apple app-store. It sounds like they make it very easy to deposit GBP but nigh on impossible to withdraw it. One reviewer on the app store even suggested moving coins to a coinbase or binance wallet instead.
Brave Browser
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It's good to see that my own advice on signing up for this one is aligned with Guy's video but these others now have me crossing my fingers that Brave is genuine. Brave browser doesn't actually pay out in Bitcoin though. It supposedly pays out in BAT tokens (nothing to do with Batman). I've covered getting started with Brave browser here and I will post on my eventual success/failure to extract earnings.
Verdict - NO !
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The premise of this video is to avoid penny-earners and delve into some higher untapped earnings potential. Guy stated it was not about mobile games and yet I think Brave browser does fall into this category since my own earnings experience suggests that $1 per week is typical (and since the minimum to create the Uphold wallet is $25 that's at least another 22 weeks before I can test if they really do pay out). At least I have time to look into this. Maybe being in the UK is the reason why we don't have many opportunities to join in these free Bitcoin schemes but possibly genuine ones don't really exist.
As we can see the crypto road to success crosses many minefields and I'm not going to be as critical as other reviewers yelling 'SCAM' at all these things. Sometimes projects take a while to get going and to sort out issues and then other problems can arise when things scale up. As ever, my findings here are personal research and should not be construed as financial advice (usual disclaimers!). For now I will continue chasing pennies with Alien Worlds and hope for a bit of luck on the NFT drops. For what it's worth, I agree with Guy that penny-chasing activities are seldom worth the time investment. I do however think they serve a purpose which is to allow us to self-educate while minimising risk; and if they add in a bit of entertainment along the way they are serving their purpose.
Oh Well
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It should be remembered that the video I have commented on here is now almost a year old and we have seen just how much the world can change in a year. Guy is the first to point out his video's are for entertainment only and I still think he does an excellent job of explaining some pretty complex topics. If you are looking into crypto as a result of the convergence of gaming and crypto, I encourage you to have a look at the other videos on his channel, especially if you are considering a hardware wallet purchase at some point.
