Trezor Safe 3 Review: Secure, Afforable Hardware Wallet?

Key Takeaway

Pros

• Most established wallet brand
• Afforable
• Proven security record
• Lightweight
• Low fees

Cons

• Design has a hollow feel
• Small screen
• No instant customer support
• Limits HD accounts
• Lacks NFT support

Unboxing

What’s in the box?

Trezor Safe 3: A Minimalistic, Effective Design

The Trezor Safe 3 device is made of a firm plastic with aluminum backplates.

The design of the wallet gives it a sort of hallow feeling, almost as if there is unused space inside. This makes the weight feel a bit light in the hand.

As with other popular wallets, the Trezor Safe 3 has a 1 inch OLED screen giving enough space to confirm crypto transactions.

And the two-button pad helps to navigate through the device options with ease.

As with all Trezor devices, there is no battery. The device excels on desktops and laptops, but isn’t ideal for mobile devices, since cables can be annoying and get in the way.

The Trezor Safe 3 is available in 4 different colors: black, rose, silver, gold. 

Is Trezor Safe 3 Easy to Set Up?

Before choosing Trezor Safe 3, do note that this device is compatible with MacOS, Windows, Linux and Android, but view-only on iOS.

Connect the Trezor Safe 3 and download the firmware update.

We’re then given the option to create or recover a wallet. Write down the new 12 word seed phrase, confirm it and set a pin code.

They also support 18, 20 or 24-word standard wallet backups for added security.

After setup, we’re immediately prompted to add some of our favorite altcoins. This is a nice touch that helps transition us into their native app.

Trezor’s setup is a bit complicated for new users, and could benefit from having some sort of explanation at each step.

Trezor Suite App: Bare Bones But Clean

Trezor’s companion app is called Trezor Suite. What sets it apart a truly simplistic interface, keeping a bare bones approach without overwhelming users.

Perform all basic actions, including sending, receiving, buying and selling.

The app also has an asthetically pleasing way of displaying the portfolio.

One of the best features on Trezor Suite is the ability to download Bitcoin-only firmware. This means less updates and reduced risk of bugs or security issues when throwing different altcoins in the mix.

Hierarchical deterministic or HD accounts determine how many different wallet addresses we can create from the same private key.

For Trezor, there is a limit intentionally put in place. This means you can only create 10 accounts per wallet per account.

Great Token Support For Trezor Suite, But Lacks NFTs

The app supports over 8,000 crypto tokens and counting. But one area Trezor truely lacks is NFTs, as there is currently not much support.

Trezor Safe 3 Security: An Old Exploit Since Fixed

Over their more than decade long existence, Trezor devices have built a solid reputation when it comes to crypto protection.

The Trezor Safe 3 uses the OPTIGA Trust M (V3) secure element EAL 6+ chip, which provides strong physical protection without the need for a Non-Disclosure Agreement or ‘NDA’.

This allows Satoshi Labs, Trezor’s creator, to keep their promise of transparency through an open-sourced ecosystem.

The secure element chip handles all cryptographic tasks, such as generating private keys and seed phrases, as well as confirming the device is genuine.

During the manufacturing process, each Trezor device has its authenticity verified, increasing the difficulty of pesky device tampering.

Trezor devices also enforce PIN protection to stop physical brute-force attempts on a stolen device.

And that brings us to the only security flaw Satoshi Labs has encountered.

Back 10 or so years ago, all secure element chips required an NDA. So the company decided not to use one in the Model T device to keep their promise of open sourcing.

That led the device vulnerable to physical hacking into the Trezor Model. Watch this incredible video by Joe Grand, who helped a Trezor user recover 2 million USD here.

Recently, Trezor switched to a new secure element chip in the Safe 3 and Safe 5, which has stopped this vulnerability in older models.

As previously mentioned, very part of Trezor is completely open sourced on their github here.

For users who particularly care about full and open transparency of hardware and software, Trezor wallets are the best choice – hands down.

Trezor Safe 3 Reputation & Reviews

Satoshi Labs, creator of Trezor, is located in Prague, Czech Republic.

From what can be found, the wallet brand is the oldest standing hardware wallet starting with the creation of the Trezor One, launched all the way back in 2014.

Trezor has quite a strong core community who believes in their goals and mission in the cryptoverse.

As for professional ratings, the Safe 3 scored relatively high across the board on popular review and customer websites.

Here’s what users are saying about the Trezor Safe 3:

For a true representation of Trezor’s reputation, consult their socials here, check their metrics and read what other users and customers are saying.

To contact Trezor support, consult the chat bot on their homepage, which can take up to 3 days for a reponse. 

Trezor Safe 3 Compared To Other Cold Wallets

How does the Trezor Safe 3 ($79) compare with other popular hardware wallets we tested?

Ledger

• Ledger S Plus ($59): nearly identical to Safe 3, USB-C only, 2 buttons, better NFT/blockchain support
• Ledger X ($149): battery powered, bluetooth or USB-C connection
• Ledger Flex ($249): bigger screen, battery powered, bluetooth or USB-C, additional features
• Ledger Stax ($399): curved screen, label binding, battery powered, bluetooth or USB-C, additional features

OneKey

• OneKey Classic 1S ($99): USB-C or bluetooth, 4 buttons, more token support

Tangem

• Tangem card ($70): NFC, less security, more portable
• Tangem ring ($160): NFC, less security, more portable

Safepal

• Safepal S1 ($49): QR codes for transactions, slower transactions, lower build quality

Coolwallet

• Coolwallet Go ($69): NFC, less security, quick transactions, more portable
• Coolwallet Pro ($149): battery, small screen, clunky, slow, more portable

Cypherock

• Cypherock X1 ($149): USB-C only, joystick, 4 card backups, worse app

Secux

• Secux Neo X ($179): bulky, lower build quality

Final Verdict: A No Brainer Budget Cold Wallet

To state the obvious, I truly enjoy this wallet.

It’s one of my main three wallets used to keep crypto safe, mainly as a Bitcoin only wallet.

Trezors security is proven as one of the oldest and most established brands in the market.

With Trezor, there are no added fees, transactions are smooth and there has been no issues to record with their native app Trezor Suite.

So should you buy a Trezor Safe 3?

For normal long term storage, yes.

As stated earlier, if you’re into NFTs or niche blockchains, there are better options such as the Ledger Flex and Stax.

Thanks for reading and catch ya in the next one!