Cryptotag Odin: Shamir Backup Kit 2024. The newest addition to the Shamir backup (SLIP39) toolbox, Cryptotag Odin, is a seed backup utility for recovering cryptocurrency wallets. Store your wallet recovery seed on safe, immutable, and damage-proof titanium hexagons by dividing it into many distributed shares. If you own a Tresor Model T and are looking for a cryptocurrency wallet that supports the SLIP39 standard, you should look at this one. It was the first significant wallet to do so.
Cryptotag also offers a specialized product for Shamir backups, making them the first recovery seed product designer to do so. So, if you think the Shamir backup method is important for your crypto security, you must need Cryptotag Odin.
Cryptotag Odin Review: Pros and Cons
For wallets that employ the Shamir Secret Sharing (SLIP39) seed recovery technique, Cryptotag Odin provides a premium toolbox for wallet backups. While the normal BIP39 recovery seed is more widely used, SLIP39 allows you to remove a potential weak point in your seed recovery process. Cryptotag Odin ensures that your recovery sheets remain legible and unharmed regardless of environmental conditions.
Cryptotag Odin’s main benefits include:
- Extra security. If you find yourself thinking about how to improve your crypto security setup, adding an extra wallet or moving entirely to a Shamir backup scheme might be a great option. Add titanium hexagons into the mix, and you might finally grant yourself complete peace of mind.
- Extreme durability. The Odin’s hexagons, like the Cryptotag Thor and Cryptotag Zeus kits before it, are constructed from high-grade titanium, which is resistant to physical damage, water, and fire. Your Shamir backup shares will be able to endure extreme physical stress for much longer as a result.
- Easy to set up. Odin uses a familiar setup process adapted for SLIP39 seeds. You’ll still have to sweat to punch holes into titanium, but the Cryptotag team made this process easier than it sounds. The duration of the setup procedure also depends on the number of secret shares in your Shamir setup.
- Quick delivery. The development team at Cryptotag put a lot of thought into the layout of their service, which offers lightning-fast shipping to almost every country. Within one to three days of making your purchase, you should get your shipment. You may find more detailed information on delivery times here.
When it comes to the drawbacks of Odin, this is what comes to mind:
- Most major wallets do not yet support SLIP39. Even though Cryptotag Odin was made to work with the Tresor Model T hardware wallet, it can also be used with other wallets that support SLIP39. For the vast majority of BIP39 wallets, Cryptotag also offers Thor and Zeus as backup choices.
- Each Odin hexagon is limited to 20 words. While some of the Shamir Secret Sharing wallets let you choose to generate 33 words per share instead of 20, it’s worth keeping in mind that you’ll only be able to store 20 words per share with Cryptotag Odin.
- Criticisms of Shamir Secret Sharing. While some security experts extol the virtues of Shamir Secret Sharing, others argue that it adds new vulnerabilities to crypto security configurations. Despite these divergences of view, everyone agrees that there are advantages and disadvantages to every crypto security technique. Your requirements, desires, and situation are unique, so pick the one that works best for you.
What Is Shamir’s Backup?
Shamir backup, in its most basic form, is just a multi-signature scheme for your recovery seed. If your cryptocurrency wallet gets lost or your device breaks, you can still access your funds thanks to the fact that it divides your recovery seed into several seed shares. Still, it’s hardly the most exciting aspect.
You don’t need all of your shares for full wallet recovery using SLIP39, unlike with BIP39 wallets, which require the exact amount of recovery words in a particular order. Instead, you can recover your entire wallet using a predetermined threshold of shares.
For example, Shamir backups let you create:
- Three seed shares with a recovery threshold of 2
- Five seed shares with a recovery threshold of 3
- Seven seed shares with a recovery threshold of 4
- Multiple other variations
The maximum number of seed shares is 16, while the recovery threshold can be set to anything from 1 to 16.
Such a method leaves extra room for error in case you lose access to certain parts of your recovery setup due to an accident or theft.
Here is a brief Shamir backup video explainer by Trezor:
What’s In The Box?
Coin Odin 3, Coin Odin 5, and Coin Odin 7 are all available for purchase. These bundles are identical, save for the quantity and pricing of titanium hexagons you’ll get for your setup.
Other than that, Cryptotag Odin shipment includes:
- 3, 5, or 7 titanium hexagons
- 3, 5, or 7 silicon sleeves for hexagons
- Center punch toolkit
- Cryptotag matches
- Earplugs
- A setup guide
- Conversion sheets (paper)
SLIP39 word list
Design and Durability
Cryptotag Odin offers a distinct hexagonal design, distinguishing it from its forerunners, Cryptotag Thor and Zeus. Twenty SLIP39 words can be stored in a single hexagon. The hexagon isn’t where you’ll actually keep your SLIP39 words; rather, you’ll use the list numbers that correlate to them.
The SLIP39 word list is 1024 words long, with each word having its specific sequence, in contrast to the BIP39 list, which uses 2048 words. If we take the alphabetical list as an example, we can see that the first word, “abandon,” corresponds to the number 0001. At the same time, you may simply substitute the word “zoo” for 1024 at the end of the list and vice versa.
So, instead of punching in the whole world, you just need to punch in the four-digit number that corresponds to the word. If you want to store recovery seed information into a titanium plate, Cryptotag says it’s easier and more dependable to use numbers instead of words.
You may find the official Cryptotag website, as well as a comprehensive collection of all SLIP39 words punched on the hexagon, along with their matching numbers. Another option is for Cryptotag to send a printed SLIP39 word list with every Odin shipment.
As far as backup products go, Odin is still one of the most sturdy options available. Made of high-grade titanium, it can withstand extreme temperatures (up to 3029 °F or 1665 °C) and physical harm without deterioration. There have been tests with: according to Cryptotag’s testing facility.
- Blocktorch
- Blacksmith fire
- Open fire
- Closed fire
- Pneumatic hammer
- Profile bending
- Metal roller
- High-pressure
- Beretta 9MM (shooting distance 10m)
- Glock 9 MM (shooting distance 10m)
- CZ Scorpion SMG (shooting distance 10m)
As such, you’re virtually guaranteed to receive one of the highest-grade cool storage tools available on the market today.
Compatible Wallets
Cryptotag Odin goes hand in hand with the Trezor Model T hardware wallet, which was the first major wallet to support the SLIP39 format.
Besides, it is also usable with other SLIP39 supporting software and hardware wallets, namely:
- Keystone
- Hermit
- Electrum
- Bluewallet
You can choose between a 33-word or 20-word recovery sheet for each sharing with some SLIP39-supporting wallets. Shares that have more than 20 characters will not work with Cryptotag Odin, so keep that in mind.
Setting Up a Shamir Backup Wallet
Just like with a standard BIP39 setup, creating a Shamir backup on a compatible wallet requires you to record additional seed words, choose a share quantity, and their associated threshold.
As an example, Trezor has put together a little video tutorial on how to make a backup of Shamir:
Here is a comprehensive video tutorial by Vlad Costea that will walk you through the steps of creating a safe Shamir backup using your Trezor Model T.
How To Set Up Cryptotag Odin Backup?
Setting up Cryptotag Odin is not so different from its BIP39 counterparts. You can upgrade your Shamir backup scheme from paper to titanium in six simple steps:
- Get your recovery words. Gather all of your Shamir backup recovery sheets in one spot or create a new Shamir wallet with the number of shares you want and jot down their information (refer to the previous paragraph).
- Convert your recovery words into their corresponding numbers. You can find them in a provided SLIP39 word list that came with your Odin package. Alternatively, you can see the digital version of the list on Cryptotag’s website.
- Punch the numbers onto the titanium hexagons just as they appear on your paper recovery sheets.
- Burn your paper recovery sheets, as keeping additional paper copies may only introduce additional attack vectors. You can use Cryptotag’s dedicated matches for a full Cryptotag experience.
- Distribute and hide your titanium hexagons. Here you have it – your own secure Shamir backup. Take care and keep it safe!
In case this wasn’tCryptotag’sCryptotag’s sufficiently clear, here is an original 5-minute setup instruction video by Cryptotag:
Cryptotag Odin vs. Cryptotag Zeus vs. Cryptotag Thor
When it comes to Shamir SLIP-39 backup schemes, there is no better backup tool than Cryptotag Odin. At the same time, the Cryptotag Zeus and Thor toolkits are all about storing BIP-39 seed phrases. The only thing that differentiates these two titanium plates is the price and the amount of seed words and wallets that each kit can hold.
Cryptotag Odin Review: Conclusion
As a new addition to Cryptotag’s lineup of high-quality backup products, Cyptotag Odin is the greatest Shamir backup alternative available today. Transforming your paper seeds into titanium hexagons is an obvious choice if you’re using or considering Shamir recovery seed backup.
