This is part one of a multiple part guide for people who are new to cryptocurrency. If you want to look at part two, you can read it here: https://steemit.com/cryptocurrency/@johngreenfield/cryptocurrency-beginner-s-guide-wallets-and-portfolios-part-two
Please note: I am in no way connected or affiliated with any of the mentioned products or services, these are all just genuine methods I’ve used to earn a little extra crypto (or not for the things labeled avoid!). Where it’s available, I’ve used my personal referral links so if you do sign up to any of these services, I’d really appreciate you using my link!
I've decided to put together a few short guides to help people who are new to the cryptocurrency world. This is going to be multiple parts, but let's start off with faucets (along with a couple of bonus crypto-related sources of income).
Faucets are a reward system, in the form of a website or app, that dispenses rewards in the form of small "drops" of a cryptocurrency, such as satoshi which is a hundredth of a millionth BTC, for visitors to claim in exchange for completing a captcha or task as described by the website.
Here are a handful that I recommend:
QoinPro
Simply sign-up for free and they will give you free coins every day. There is no catch! As soon as you sign-up you start receiving bitcoins, litecoins, dogecoins and many more cryptocoins. There are bonuses to be earnt, and you can spend tokens to boost your bonuses. QoinPro is also a multi-currency wallet. All coins can be sent, received, deposited and withdrawn.
Signup Link: https://qoinpro.com/52045b55e7d5b35a89851377de38bef0
SwiftDemand
Swift Demand is an attempt at basic income. Each user who is signed up for the service receives 100 Swifts each day, plus 500 Swifts for each user you refer. No additional Swifts can be created with time or resources.
Signup Link: https://www.swiftdemand.com/?referred_by=johngreenfield
Moondoge.co.in
Moon Dogecoin is a dogecoin faucet with a difference...YOU decide how often to claim! Whereas most faucets only allow you to claim once per hour or once per day, they allow you to claim as often or as little as you like*
The faucet will gradually fill up - quite quickly initially but it will slow down over time - until you make a claim. So the longer you leave it the more you will be able to claim. You may prefer to claim a smaller amount every 5 minutes, or visit once per day and claim the large amount that has built up while you were away!
The minimum withdrawal limit is 100 dogecoins, which you can easily achieve in a week. I’ve been using this faucet for over two years now and I highly recommend it if you’re looking for a reliable faucet.
(*minimum 5 minutes between claims per account/IP address)
Signup Link: http://moondoge.co.in/?ref=11bde234996e
Moonbit.co.in
Exactly the same as above, but for Bitcoin. Minimum withdrawal limit is 25000 satoshi, and again I’ve been using it for over two years now.
Signup Link: http://moonbit.co.in/?ref=bbc2853adddb
Moonlite.co.in
This one is completely different to the two above… just kidding, it’s the same but Litecoin this time. Minimum withdrawal limit is 500000 litoshi.
Signup Link: http://moonliteco.in/?ref=38640df0a101
POWtoken.com
POW is a cryptocurrency that is being given to all users of Facebook and Twitter. If you're a user of Facebook or Twitter it is completely free to get an initial allocation, and the earlier you claim the bigger it is.
The current version lets you send and receive POW with zero transaction fees with your Facebook friends. Soon they'll be releasing functionality that means you can do the same with your Twitter followers. Next will come the ability to transfer POW with any other user just by sending to their email address.
POW is all about recognizing your value, and giving it back to you.
Signup Link: https://powtoken.com/index.php?ref=POW65460
And here are the two other methods worth looking at:
Electroneum
Electroneum is a new British cryptocurrency that went live at the beginning of November 2017. The core concept for Electroneum centres around a mobile app that serves as both a wallet and mobile miner. Mining is apparently going to be “simulated” mining, with the coins gained from the premine being distributed between the mobile users. They are currently undergoing penetration testing with the mobile app and wallet to be released in a few weeks. You can get setup pool mining on your computer right now. My Alienware 17 laptop gets around 410h/s, which is roughly 30ETN a day at the moment. Nothing amazing, but if the coin does appreciate over the next year as the community hopes, there could be a decent profit to be made.
Signup Link: Their registration system is currently offline until the penetration testing is finished, however if you wish to start mining on your computer then I’d recommend the Electroneum Hashparty Mining Pool. They have Getting Started information on their site - http://us-etn-stats.hashparty.io/#
More information on using your CPU and GPU to mine can be found here: https://steemit.com/cryptocurrency/@johngreenfield/tutorial-how-to-mine-electroneum-with-nvidia-amd-gpu-graphics-card
App: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.electroneum.app&hl=en
Minergate
MinerGate is a mining pool created by a group of cryptocoin enthusiasts. It is the first pool which provides service for merged mining. This means that while mining on our pool you can mine different coins simultaneously without a decrease of hashrate for the first coin.
I've read mixed reviews for Minergate, but I've been using their desktop and mobile apps for six months now. You aren't going to get rich with this. If you're new to cryptocurrency and you're looking for an easy way to get into mining, then sign up now. There's quite a few different cryptos to mine, however the majority are considered sh!tcoins. You can mine Monero, Ethereum and soon Bitcoin Gold, which are all worth doing (except really Ethereum due to the high difficulty). If you've got a few old android devices lying around, get the app put on them and put them to work. You're middle-of-the-road fairly recent phone can achieve 10h/s, which is better than nothing. Get a few of them going, and you've got a small easy rig.
The other feature of Minergate is their Cloud Mining contracts, which in my opinion, are the best available. There's Bitcoin and Monero available, and although Bitcoin probably won't be particularly profitable, Monero still has a lot more room to grow.
So overall, if you're looking for an easy entry point into mining, or want to get started with a cloud contract, then definitely give Minergate a go. If you’re familiar with mining, it’s probably not worth your time.
Signup Link: https://minergate.com/a/f373744629ec448d4587db08
App: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.minergate.miner&hl=en
Update: I've written a tutorial on mining Monero using third-party software specifically with Minergate in mind. Check it out here: https://steemit.com/cryptocurrency/@johngreenfield/tutorial-how-to-mine-monero-xmr-with-xmr-stak-nvidia-and-minergate
If you know of any others I should take a look at, feel free to leave a comment!
As always, never invest more than you can afford to lose. There are no guarantees when it comes to investments in general, but be extra cautious with cryptocurrencies. Peace and love