When choosing hardware wallets, many crypto users base their decisions on day-to-day asset management needs and perceived device security. However, savvy crypto users first consider a wallet’s ability to handle long-term security scenarios. Long-term security includes expected essentials like backup and recovery tools, and also often-overlooked features related to secure and fault-proof third-party recovery. You can think of third-party recovery as your ability to allow crypto assets to be inherited by successors. Successful crypto users require a comprehensive security strategy for the full life cycle of crypto assets. This article will help you achieve that.
Let’s jump into helping you understand the pros and cons of the Ledger Stax and Trezor Safe 5 hardware wallets for day-to-day activities, as well as their potential to safeguard the long-term security and longevity of your assets.
Overview
The Ledger Stax and Trezor Safe 5 both provide a wide variety of reliable security features and support a broad spectrum of cryptocurrencies, making them suitable for diverse crypto portfolios. However, several differences are clear:
Ledger Stax
- Mobile-Centric Usability: Designed with mobility in mind, the Ledger Stax features wireless connectivity options like Bluetooth, making it highly compatible with mobile platforms.
- Premium Design: Its unconventionally large display enhances readability, though it comes with slightly slower responsiveness.
- Price Point: Positioned as a premium product, its cost reflects its advanced features and sleek design.
Trezor Safe 5
- Open-Source Transparency: Built on an NDA-free framework (full disclosure), Trezor Safe 5 emphasizes trust through transparency, appealing to users who value open-source security.
- Simplified Connectivity: Limited to USB connections, it offers reliable functionality for desktop and Android users only.
- Affordable Access: At a much lower price point, it delivers solid security and usability without the premium cost.
In terms of crypto asset longevity features, such as backup, recovery, and crypto inheritance, both devices provide industry-standard and proprietary options with certain trade-offs, as well as compatibility with third-party solutions like Vault12 Guard for succession planning scenarios.
The decision between the two will likely hinge on individual preferences for the target platform (mobile or desktop), and should take into account the planned frequency of use.
Approach to comparison
When choosing the best hardware wallet for cryptocurrency security, you may wonder:
- Which is better, the Ledger Stax or the Trezor Safe 5?
- How easy to use are these wallets?
- How do their security features compare?
- Do these wallets have vulnerabilities, and have they been hacked?
- What happens if your wallet is lost or stolen?
- How do these wallets accomodate user errors, and complex scenarios like inheritance of crypto assets?
This article compares important characteristics for these two popular wallets. We’ll break down the strengths and weaknesses of each, focusing on security, ease of use, and backup and recovery methods.
By the end of this comparison, you’ll clearly understand which wallet is right for you, as well as how to recover your crypto assets in case of accidents.
What happens if your wallet is lost or stolen?
Wise wallet owners recognize the critical importance of crypto recovery before they find themselves in an unexpected bind! That’s why it’s important to understand the fundamental topic of crypto asset longevity, including features such as backup, recovery, and inheritance for crypto assets. These considerations are central to long-term planning.
Technical security is paramount, but in the world of crypto, the degree to which backup and recovery solutions are foolproof for users is at least equally important. Here are the backup and recovery options for these two wallets:
How do these wallets handle Crypto Inheritance?
Crypto Inheritance Features
Currently, most hardware wallets, including the Ledger Stax and Trezor Safe 5, lack any features for establishing and managing crypto inheritance. This gap presents a challenge for users who want to be sure that their crypto assets can be transferred to their heirs.
Backup and recovery differentiators
Ledger Stax Recovery Disadvantages:
- The optional Ledger Recover backup service is a paid service provided by three corporations that each hold parts of the user’s seed phrase in a Cloud. This introduces risks, as the seed phrase could potentially be accessed via subpoena; or business partners could terminate agreements or become involved in lawsuits that result in locked data or resources (like, for example, Gemini and Genesis). These scenarios contain multiple potential points of failure, and should be taken into account.
- Very important detail: The terms of the optional Ledger Recover service do not mention
support for inheritance, meaning any unfortunate accident related to
the user will make crypto assets unrecoverable for his or her
successors. Ledger itself suggests using 3rd-party crypto inheritance
services for those purposes.
Ledger Stax Recovery Advantages:
- People have different preferences. If a user is comfortable trusting a bank with their assets, they may also feel confident using Ledger Recover for securing their seed phrase backup (even though Ledger is not providing the entire Cloud backup solution).
Trezor Safe 5 Recovery Disadvantages:
- Trezor has a Multishare backup service, but it is fully manual, and challenging to maintain. The user is responsible for generating, distributing, and keeping track of the encrypted shards.
Trezor Safe 5 Recovery Advantages:
- Trezor offers the Multishare backup option for those who are able and willing to set it up.
How easy are these crypto wallets to use?
User holding a mobile phone and using Ledger Stax as FIDO U2F security key
Let’s compare the key aspects of both wallets side by side, and then summarize what really stands out for user convenience:
Trezor Safe 5 wallet and desktop software
Crypto wallet user experience differences
Ledger Stax UX Disadvantages:
- The display has a noticeable response delay due to the “E Ink” touchscreen technology, and could be irritating.
- Not all apps are ported to Stax yet. Even the native Passwords app still has no release date identified as of this article’s publish date, so check in advance whether your favorite network/coin is supported.
- Extremely expensive. The value in Stax is more about design, rather than practical aspects.
Ledger Stax UX Advantages:
- Huge informative display and “Clear Signing” allows you to review and confirm all transaction details directly on Ledger Stax and in a human-readable language before they are signed and sent. This enhances security and ensures that you see exactly what you are approving in a secure and tamper-proof manner.
- Offers Bluetooth connectivity — works with or without a cable, at least with smartphones.
- Wide support for third-party wallets and dapps, allowing the Ledger Stax to sign transactions directly in MetaMask, Uniswap, and other platforms without relying on Ledger Live software. This is a huge advantage for DeFi users.
Trezor Safe 5 UX Disadvantages:
- No wireless connectivity: you always have to use a cable.
- iOS integration is view-only: you can watch your balance, but can’t send transactions from iOS apps.
Trezor Safe 5 UX Advantages:
- The display is easy to read and convenient to use on a regular basis.
- The touchscreen and input are very well-thought-out experiences on Trezor Safe 5 — you can use them without any discomfort.
How do these wallets’ security features compare?
Now, we dive deeper into the core specification of every hardware wallet: security features.
| Ledger Stax | Trezor Safe 5 | |
| PIN-code | 4 – 8 digits | up to 50 digits |
| BIP39 Passphrase | Yes | Yes |
| Open-source | Partial | Full |
| Secure Element | Yes | Yes, and it’s NDA-free |
| Multisignature | Yes | Yes |
Crypto wallet security feature differentiators
Trezor Safe 5 with a void sticker on it – security seal of genuineness
Ledger Stax Security Disadvantages:
- Critical components like the Secure Element and its operating system are closed-source. This raises concerns, especially after the controversial introduction of the Ledger Recover backup service, which challenged the previous assumption that the Secure Element could never transmit the recovery seed phrase outside the hardware wallet.
Ledger Stax Security Advantages:
- Includes a Secure Element, giving Ledger devices a strong reputation for withstanding physical attacks. This is important for users who prefer not to complicate their security with BIP39 passphrases, instead prioritizing ease of use.
- Clear Signing is also a security feature.
Trezor Safe 5 Security Disadvantages:
- Trezor does not fully rely on open-source software and hardware, but mitigates this limitation architecturally, so that the seed phrase is not touched by any closed-source software on the device.
Trezor Safe 5 Security Advantages:
- Along with this new flagship product, Trezor introduces Secure Element chips, raising the security bar. More importantly, its Secure Elements are “NDA-free,” which is good: the chips are not bound by Non-Disclosure Agreements (NDAs) that could restrict Trezor from publicly discussing any security flaws.
- The Secure Element is responsible for verifying device authenticity via secure boot protection, and for storing a part of the secret that is used to decrypt the recovery seed (but it never actually knows what your recovery seed is).
- Allows for longer PIN codes, which might appeal to particularly cautious users.
Have there been vulnerabilities or hacks of these wallets?
Given that both of these products under review are very new, we will examine their manufacturers’ histories of hacks. There have been vulnerabilities and hacks associated with both the Ledger and Trezor products.
While relatively secure, most crypto wallets — even hardware wallets — can not provide perfect security, and are routinely subject to malware, supply chain, and firmware vulnerabilities. Here are some recent notable incidents:
Ledger Vulnerabilities:
- The Connect Kit Attack (2023): The Connect Kit breach was discovered by the security teams of Ledger.
- Ledger User Data Breach (2020): A major data breach exposed the personal information of thousands of customers, leading to phishing attacks.
- Another User Data Breach (2021): Ledger announced on Twitter that it has been targeted by rogue Shopify team members who exported over 200 merchants’ customer databases.
- Ledger Live (2020): Users were exposed to basic double spending attacks, amplified double spending attacks, and DoS attacks without user consent.
- Potential Supply Chain Attack Vulnerability (2020): Kraken Security Labs Identifies Supply Chain Attacks Against Ledger Wallets.
Trezor Vulnerabilities:
- Ability to Physically Hack Trezor T Wallet (2023): Crypto Security Firm Unciphered Claims Ability to Physically Hack Trezor T Wallet
- Five Reported Vulnerabilities in Two Models of Trezor Hardware Wallets (2019): Ledger’s Attack Lab has found five vulnerabilities in hardware wallets of its direct competitor Trezor.
- Kraken Identifies Critical Flaw in Trezor Hardware Wallets (2020): Kraken Security Labs has devised a way to extract seeds from both cryptocurrency hardware wallets offered from industry leader Trezor, the Trezor One and Trezor Model T.
No software is perfect, and no wallet is ideal. However, some designs have been compromised more than others.
Summary of Ledger Stax and Trezor Safe 5 Comparison
The Ledger Stax and Trezor Safe 5 both provide a respectable set of security measures, and support a broad spectrum of cryptocurrencies, making them suitable for diverse crypto portfolios.
The Ledger Stax is more mobile-friendly, and offers a balance of security and convenience features at a very premium price. It offers an unconventionally-large display with delayed response, with the advantage of wireless connectivity options like Bluetooth.
On the other hand, the Trezor Safe 5, at a much lower price, boasts a more open-source and NDA-free framework, a reasonably-sized display with colors, and a touchscreen interface for enhanced user interaction. However, it has fewer convenience features: it works only with USB connections, and is missing iOS integration.
The decision between the two will likely hinge on individual preferences for the target platform (mobile or desktop), and should take into account the planned frequency of use.
Whichever you choose, remember to add crypto inheritance to your choice of wallet to ensure the long-term safety of your digital assets. Both the Ledger Stax and Trezor Safe 5 are compatible with Vault12 Guard Inheritance planning.
Vault12 Guard: a decentralized solution for Crypto Inheritance
Vault12 is the pioneer in Crypto Inheritance Management, and delivers an easy-to-use and securemethod for assigning a legacy contact to your crypto wallets. This enables you to pass on your wallet seed phrases and private keys for all types of digital assets to future generations. Vault12 Guard is designed for everyday people, yet strong enough for Crypto OGs.
Vault12 Guard has a uniquely-secure design. Utilizing advanced encryption and decentralized storage, it ensures that crypto assets are not only safe but also transferable under predefined conditions, filling a critical need unmet by most traditional hardware wallets. Vault12 Guard applies a hybrid approach of software fused with the hardware-based Secure Element of phone devices (The Secure Enclave for iOS devices, and Strongbox for Google devices). Vault12 Guard’s decentralized design minimizes possible points of failure. Nothing is stored on Cloud servers or Vault12 servers, and no assets are stored on local devices, making them less of a target.
From a user perspective, the Vault12 Guard app asks users to appoint one or more people (or mobile devices) as Guardians. The designated Guardians are entrusted to protect the user’s comprehensive collection of wallet seed phrases and private keys, which are safely stored within a decentralized digital Vault. Its simple, user-friendly workflow removes the necessity for regularly revising wallet inventories or modifying instructions for your lawyers — a process that otherwise could lead to privacy breaches.
Both the Ledger Stax and Trezor Safe 5 are compatible with Vault12 Guard Inheritance. This addresses the seed phrase backup dilemma for any hardware wallet. It also makes less-secure backup methods, such as paper or steel plates, unnecessary.