CellUnlock.net Review

With more and more phone unlocking companies entering in the market, now a locked cell phone seems no more a problem. Phone unlocking is as simple as requesting an unlock code for your phone while sitting at home.  CellUnlock.net also entered the phone unlocking market with the aim to provide fast and cheap phone unlocking solution to its customers.

CellUnlock.net laid its foundation in Miami, FL, in 2007. With CellUnlock.net, you can unlock your phone remotely simply by entering the unlock code. With over 8 years of experience, the company has been able to handle thousands of phone unlocking cases successfully. The unlocking service that CellUnlock.net brings is safe and reliable as it keeps your phone’s warranty intact.

Service Details

CellUnlock.net focuses on providing unlocking solutions for GSM phones. Follow these simple steps to request an unlock code:

  • Choose your phone brand and model
  • Select the network carrier your phone is currently locked to
  • The service calculates your order charges and displays it to you. If you continue with your order request, you will be asked to provide phone and payment details.

Once your code is ready, you will receive an email. The email contains the unlock code and the unlocking instructions on how to unlock your mobile handset. There might be cases where an unlock code is not available for your device but an alternate solution might exist that could help you unlock your mobile handset. In either case, you will be notified in time by the service provider.

Time Frame for Delivery: Depending on your phone model and the network carrier your phone is currently locked to, the order delivery time varies. When you place your order, the service provider calculates the estimated delivery time for your order and displays it to you. The company tries its best to deliver you the order within the time specified, but sometimes the order delivery time might exceed the average delivery time specified for your order.

The service allows its customers to check the status of their order.

Supported Phone Brands and Carriers:   CellUnlock.net provides unlock codes for Alcatel, Apple iPhone, Blackberry, Doro, HP, HTC, Huawei, INQ, LG, Motorola, Nokia, Palm, Pantech, Samsung, Sendo, Sharp, Sidekick, Siemens BenQ, Sony Ericsson and ZTE phone brands.

The network carriers that CellUnlock.net supports vary from country to country.

Customer Support/Service: The company provides full support to its customers. Their website contains good helping material.

FAQ section: The section contains well explained answers to frequently asked questions.

Help section: This section is just like the FAQ section, but here the queries are organized categorically.

“Contact Us”: If you still have any unanswered concerns, then you can contact the service provider directly. When you visit this section, you are required to fill in the short form to submit your query.

Email:  Email is another option available through which you can get your queries resolved.

Customer Service Telephone: CellUnlock.net also has a customer support number available on their website. You can call on that number and talk to the service provider directly.

Security & Trust

CellUnlock.net assures its customers that its phone unlocking service will never disappoint, but if in rare cases the service failed to unlock the user’s phone then a full payment will be refunded. However, it must be noted that a refund will only be given after proper investigation.

Regarding the refund policy, the company also says that it reserves the right to refuse a refund under the following conditions:

  • If the unlock code has been sent and the IMEI number (phone’s unique identifier) supplied was incorrect
  • If the phone was already unlocked prior to placing the order
  • If it turned out that the information provided regarding the network carrier phone is currently locked to, was incorrect
  • If you were trying to unlock a blocked or stolen cell phone
  • If the phone you are trying to unlock was already hard-locked because of failed unlocking attempts made in the past.

CellUnlock.net also makes it clear that no order will be cancelled once the payment has been made by the user.

Privacy Statement: CellUnlock.net in its “Privacy Policy” section explains in detail the kind of user data it collects and how it uses users’ data. The company also talks about the security measures it adopts in order to keep users’ data safe from any unauthorized access.

CellUnlock.net collects the following data when you register an account on their website or place an order request:

  • Your personal information (name, phone number, email address, mailing address)
  • Payment related details

Regarding information disclosure, the company says that it does not sell or share users’ personal data with anyone unless they sign up for email newsletter because in that case the user explicitly gives permission to the company to send occasional promotional material from third parties.

CellUnlock.net puts in every effort to protect users’ data. According to CellUnlock.net all personal information is kept confidential and only people that have special access rights are allowed to access systems where users’ data is stored. Also, all financial transactions are carried out over a secure channel and all sensitive data is stored in encrypted form.

Supported Payment Methods: CellUnlock.net accepts payments made by:

  • Visa
  • MasterCard
  • American Express
  • Discover
  • PayPal

CellUnlock.net charges all payments in US Dollar currency only.

Pros:

  • Promises a full refund in case the service was unable to unlock your phone
  • All financial transactions are carried out over a secure channel – uses SSL (Secure Socket Layer)
  • Quotes the order delivery time for each order and also allows you to check the order status

Cons:

  • Supports limited phone brands
  • Order delivery time might exceed the delivery time specified on their website

Ratings:

Here are some rating scores that show how CellUnlock.net has performed over the years:

  • Reseller Ratings:Based on 319 reviews, CellUnlock.net scores 6.06 out of 10
  • Review Centre: CellUnlock.net scores 3.5 out of 5
  • Trust Pilot: CellUnlock.net scores 8.6 out of 10

Conclusion:

CellUnlock.net has been able to secure a good reputation in the market because of its safe and reliable phone unlocking services. The service also offers good customer support to its customers.

Cellcorner Review

A locked cell phone is considered a major concern and anyone having a locked cell phone is looking for an escape since no one wants to stick to a single network or would like to sell the cell phone just to switch to a different network. People like to get their cell phones unlocked because it not only saves them money, but also increases their phone’s worth.

Many phone unlocking companies offer their services to help you get rid of network lock. Phone unlocking is now as simple as entering an unlock code and you are done. Cellcorner is another phone unlocking company that came up with the idea to provide reliable phone unlocking services to its customers. The company is established and registered in West Palm Beach, Florida USA. Cellcorner has been serving its customers for over a decade now and owns a good repute in the market.

Service Details

Cellcorner offers several ways through which you can get your cell phone unlocked:

  • Ship-in unlocking: You ship your cell phone to the service provider and the provider after unlocking it, sends it back to you. This type of unlocking may take up to 3 days, but the “Express handling” feature may help you in getting your phone unlocked within 24 hours.
  • Remote unlocking: It is the simplest and the most commonly used method, but unfortunately Cellcorner provides unlocking codes only for limited phone brands.
  • Self-unlocking: This type of unlocking requires the use of unlocking equipment and a special software. A variety of cables and other unlocking equipment can be found at their online store. In many cases, the software is provided for free when you purchase any of these items.

Time Frame for Delivery: The turnaround time depends on many factors. Firstly, it depends on the type of unlocking service available for your phone. If your cell phone can be unlocked remotely, then the turnaround time only depends on the phone model and the network the phone is currently locked to. If your order requires shipment, then delivery time also depends on the country of destination. The company does mention the estimated delivery for your order, but it cannot guarantee that the order will be delivered in time. You can request urgent order delivery, but for that you have to pay extra charges. To keep you updated, the company also allows you to check the status of your order.

Supported Phone Brands and Carriers: Cellcorner brings unlocking services to a wide range of customers. Cellcorner supports a variety of phone brands, the list of major phone brands include Apple, BlackBerry, Sony, LG, Huawei, Nokia, Rogers, Samsung, HTC and many others.

Customer Service/Support: Cellcorner provides full support to its customers.

  • Questions & Answers: This section covers all general queries that one might have regarding unlocking services.
  • Email: In order to send a message to the service provider, you are required to fill a short form.
  • Live chat: The live chat support is available too, if you find the service offline, you can drop them a mail.
  • Skype chat: This is another convenient option for all Skype users.
  • Phone call: Make a phone call to discuss your concerns with the service provider.

Security & Trust

Cellcorner promises its customers that a refund will be provided if its unlocking services failed to work, but the refund policy varies depending on the unlocking service availed by the user.  For unlocking equipment like data cables and other tangible items, the company says that it does not accept product returns for refund, but defective items can be returned for repair or replacement.

Here is how the refund policy works for remote unlocking services:

  • If the user received a wrong unlock code, users will be given 3 days following the order delivery to request a free code verification
  • If after the verification, it turned out that the code the user is claiming to be wrong is the same as that delivered by the service provider then the user will be issued a refund. A refund will only be given if the user provides a video proof.

Regarding order cancellation, the company makes it clear that for tangible items the order cannot be cancelled once the product has been shipped and orders of unlock codes cannot be cancelled once the order request has been submitted to Cellcorner.

Privacy Statement: Cellcorner says that the company respects users’ privacy and makes every effort to guard users’ data.

Cellcorner in its privacy terms also talks about the user information it collects and how the company uses the collected data. The information (name, email, address, and phone related details) that provider collects is required to complete order requests successfully and your email address may also be used to send occasional promotional material. The company does not store any financial information and all credit card information is passed to the credit card processing company. In order to ensure that your data remains in safe hands all financial transactions are carried out over a secure connection.

About information sharing, the company writes that it never provides user’s contact or payment details to any third party vendor, however, if the company believes that it is necessary to share user data so as to complete transaction and order, then it may provide the required information.

Supported Payment Methods: Cellcorner lets you make payments through various means:

  • Credit Cards (Visa, MasterCard, American Express, Discover)
  • PayPal
  • Bank Transfer
  • MoneyGram
  • Money Orders
  • Other Payment Methods – Contact the service provider if you want to clear your payments through any other method

Pros:

  • Accepts various payment methods
  • Support a wide range of phone brands
  • Good customer support
  • SSL (Secure Socket Layer) – All communications are carried out over a secure channel

Cons:

  • Remote unlocking service is available only for limited phone brands
  • Cannot guarantee that an order will be delivered in time specified
  • The user must claim a refund within 3 days following the order delivery, otherwise your refund request would be declined

Ratings

  • Reseller Ratings:Cellcorner scores 9.53 out of 10.

Conclusion

The Cellcorner is an experienced company that offers phone unlocking solution to a wide range of customers, but what may disappoint the users is that the service brings remote unlocking services only for limited phone brands.

Unlock-Network.com Review

One might question why is a locked cell phone considered a major concern and why are people so eager to get their cell phones unlocked? Well, there are plenty of reasons why people would love to unlock their cell phone from its current network. Maybe they want to travel and reduce roaming charges or maybe they want to switch providers for better deals or possibly they want to sell their phone at a better price. Many believe that unlocking is illegal and tricky, however, it’s neither tricky nor illegal.  Unlocking is completely legal since the phone is your property so you have the right to use it the way you want and with many remote unlocking services available these days, unlocking is no more considered a big problem. Unlock-Network, like other phone unlocking companies is here to address your concerns by providing phone unlocking services. Unlock-Network has been in business since 2004.

Unlock-Network is an easy to use online service that allows you to unlock your cell phone just by requesting an unlock code. Unlock-Network service is fast and risk free as the job can be done without the need to send your cell phone to the service provider.

Service Details

Unlock-Network provides unlocking codes for your locked handsets. Just follow these simple steps to request an unlock code:

  • Choose your phone model
  • Choose your country and the current network provider (the provider your phone is locked to)
  • Provide your mobile’s IMEI number and other important details (name and email address)
  • Confirm your order and provide payment related details

You will receive your unlock code via email along with unlocking instructions.

Time Frame for Delivery: Unlock-Network claims that they have the best turnaround time in the industry, even some codes get delivered instantly. The service usually takes 1-2 business days to deliver your order, the service starts from the moment the order has been paid and confirmed. The service provider makes it clear that delivery times stated on Unlock-Network’s website are just the estimated delivery times and that delays may occur in order delivery.

An order tracking facility is available as well.

Supported Phone Brands and Carriers: Unlock-Network provides unlock codes for Apple, Samsung, LG, HTC, BlackBerry, Sony, Nokia, Motorola, Huawei, Alcatel, ZTE and many others.

Unlock-Network supports a huge list of network carriers, but the type of networks supported vary from country to country.

Customer Service/Support: Unlock-Network‘s support team is available 24 hours a day to guide you and resolve your issues. Unlock-Network provides help to its customers through various means:

FAQ section: This section is well organized. All major concerns related to phone unlocking have been discussed here.

Contact section: This section works just like a ticket system. Here you are required to fill a short form in order to submit your query.

Email or Call: Email address and phone number both are provided on their website. Email or call, pick any option, whichever you find more suitable. You can contact the service provider from Monday to Friday [10AM-12AM/2PM-4PM (GMT times)].

Security & Trust

“Unlock-Network is a trusted phone unlocking service”, Unlock-Network supports this statement by stating the number of phones it has successfully unlocked. The service has so far unlocked over 4 million mobile handsets.

The company is confident of its phone unlocking services and says that customer satisfaction is our first priority.  Unlock-Network will be ready to make a full refund if its unlocking services ever failed to meet user expectations. Regarding money back guarantee offer, the company says that if you believe that you received an incorrect code from our side, just provide us with the video proof and we will refund your transaction. Unlock-Network also says that the user should keep in mind that the guarantee itself is subject to the following terms:

  • Guarantee does not apply if user has provided wrong information (IMEI number, phone model, network your phone is currently locked to).
  • Guarantee does not apply if the user is trying to unlock a CDMA (non-GSM) phone.
  • Guarantee does not apply if the phone user is trying to unlock is already hard-locked.
  • Guarantee does not apply if the user retries the same unlock code, thus reducing the number of unlock attempts available before they have contacted technical support for advice.
  • Guarantee does not apply if Unlock-Network service could not deliver the code in time because the times specified on their website are just the estimated delivery times and delays can occur in delivering orders.
  • Guarantee applies only if customers have proven that codes have failed to work. Video evidence may be requested before a refund is granted.

For iPhone users, there are some additional terms that apply to money back guarantee. The detailed description of these terms can be found on their website.

Privacy Statement: Regarding user’s privacy, the company makes it clear that:

  • All personal data is kept securely using the standard industry practices.
  • The personal data is collected for the purpose of processing order requests.
  • The company will never disclose any of its user data to a third party without the user consent
  • Unlock-Network does not store customer payment card details, all this information is directly sent to payment providers for payment processing.
  • To combat fraud, the company is bound obliged to log the IP addresses of customer computers
  • If you want your data to be removed from records, you can request the service provider and they will delete your data from their database.

Supported Payment Methods: You can make your payments via PayPal, Google Checkout or credit cards.

Pros

  • Fastest turnaround time
  • Unlock-Network offers the best prices
  • 100% money back guarantee
  • Supports a wide range of phone brands

Cons

  • There may be delays in order delivery

Ratings

The rating scores shared below will help you understand more about how the company has performed over the years:

  • Review Centre: Unlock-Network scores 3.3 out of 5.
  • Trusted Shops: Based on 56 customer reviews, Unlock-Network scores 4.93 out of 5.
  • Verified Reviews: Based on 54 user reviews, Unlock-Network scores 9.8 out of 10.

Conclusion

Unlock-Network service is known well in the market because of its economical prices and the best turnaround times that it offers to its customers.

Best Phone Unlock Service

Best Unlock – Top Phone Unlocking Services

Today, most mobile sets come locked to a particular network. Having a locked cellphone means you are bound to use the services of that network from which it was initially purchased. Consider that you brought a mobile set from Cingular and later you decided to change the service to Roger, but sadly you cannot, since your new SIM card would not work with the mobile you purchased from Cingular so you are in a lockup. The technique used to set you free from this imprisonment is known as “Mobile Unlocking”.

This website is a good guide for anyone looking to break free their mobile handsets from digital shackles. To make this read more informative, all possible methods that can be used to unlock a phone have also been discussed.

Why unlock your phone?

An unlocked mobile phone brings you much greater benefits:

Switch to a better network service: What will you do if you find out that the phone you brought the other day is locked? Although, you love the handset but do not like the network service because it is costly, will you buy a new phone just to switch to a better network? Well, there is certainly a better solution and that is unlocking your phone. Doing so will let you switch to as many networks as you want while keeping the same handset.

Opportunity to avail promotional deals: Nowadays, many network providers offer free SIMs for promotional purposes. These SIMs bring quite exciting packages. You would not be able to grab these deals if you have a locked phone.

Adds value to your handset: Unlocked phones bring more value to users and this is why they can be sold at better rates on websites like ebay.

More independence: Love travelling yet worried about phone costs? Unlock your phone today to cut down the roaming charges. An unlock phone gives you the freedom to use foreign SIMs while you are abroad, thus cuts down many extra charges.

Why do mobile phone companies lock phones?

Have you ever heard statements like “if you buy an iPhone from that particular mobile phone company then it would cost you only $99?” If yes, then have you ever pondered what the secret behind this mega offer is? Of course, it’s not a one way trait!! If you are being offered such big value at such low cost, then definitely these mobile firms do expect something in return that is why they lock the cellphone you purchase.

By binding you to a network these companies ensure that they will have you as a customer for at least a few years’ time. During this contract period, these companies would be able to cover up the cost of discounted price, by preventing you from using the phone with another carrier. You cannot switch to another service without paying the contract cancellation fee, hence this way the companies minimize their risk.

It’s perfectly legal to unlock your phone

Many believe that unlocking phone is illegal, however it’s not. This misconception arises because unlocking and unblocking are often mixed up, whereas they are two different concepts.

  • Unlocking phone: Unlocking phone means making it work with any SIM card and is absolutely legal.
  • Unblocking phone: It is an act of making the phone work again once it has been blocked by network providers. Unblocking may be illegal, so should be avoided.

What about my warranty?

Although it is legal to unlock the phone, but it invalidates your warranty in most cases, therefore decision must be taken wisely if you have an expensive phone and warranty period still exists.

Is there any way around it?

It is possible to unlock phone while keeping its warranty intact. It can be done by using a small device known as “Sim unlocking attachment”. This device has approximately the same size as that of your SIM and fits easily in the phone’s card slot along with the SIM. The device rather than unlocking the phone unlocks the SIM to make it work with your mobile thus your phone warranty remains intact.

How to unlock my phone?

If putting a different SIM in your phone does not work out then it means that your phone is locked and there are distinct ways available through which you can unlock your phones:

Remote Unlocking

This is the most common method and requires you to enter special codes in your phone. If the code works out, it will set you free from all restrictions. You can either use the free codes available on the websites or can purchase one.

1. Check if you can unlock your phone for free

There are many sites that provide codes for free so unlocking phone is as simple as entering a special code. This method is more suitable for older phones, but you can always try these codes on your newer phones before moving on to the paid options.
Now, we will discuss in detail how this method can be used to unlock phones.

Step 1: Get your facts right

To refine your search, it is important that you have the following set of information with you before you start looking for a code.
Brand and Model number: It is mainly known to the user as is pretty simple to find. You can find it either on the handset or the box or on any documentation that comes along with your mobile phone.

  • The Network: It is the network you want to get rid of. It is the network your phone is currently locked to.
  • The IMEI: IMEI stands for International Mobile Equipment Identity and is used to uniquely identify a mobile set. This unique number gets marked as invalid when phones are reported to be stolen or lost. To find the IEMI of your phone, simply type #06# and you will get the unique identifier.

Step 2: Find an unlocking code

There are numerous websites available that could help you find codes, but which site is more suitable depends on your phone’s brand. If you are looking to unlock a Nokia phone, then you can try sites like Unlock NokiaFree.

Step 3: Use it

The dedicated phone unlocking websites would generate codes based on the information you provide. Once you have the code, you can pull out the old SIM and put a new one. Now it is time to put in the code:

How to enter the code

Entering a code may get a bit tricky for some phones because regular keys are not used to produce letters, rather you have to use the * key. Here are a few guidelines on how you can generate letters with the help of * key:

  • p: press the * key three times within two seconds
  • w: press the * key four times within two seconds
  • +: press the * key twice within two seconds

If you entered the right code, then you will get a confirmation message stating something like “phone restriction off”. Since you usually have only five attempts so please be very careful when entering code else you would have to contact the retailer or network provider to get it unlocked for you.

2. Buy a code

Failed to find a free code? Worry not, you can always buy one, but make sure it’s a cheap one. You should opt for this method only if you are sure that an unlocked phone will bring you more value. These codes would also work with modern cellphones so this method is worth a try.
It’s a two-step process:

Get a quote from your network: Contact your current network provider and ask them how much would they cost for an unlock code. Beware, if the network provider fails to quote a price, then there is a high chance that your phone isn’t unlockable by a code, so without wasting any time you should jump to the next method that is “Unlocking via cable”. Price range varies depending on the network and mobile set you use.

Try the dedicated unlockers: Now, with an estimated cost in your mind, you can check different phone shops or contact any online retailer and request them to send you a code. Once you have the code, simply put it in your phone following the instructions already discussed in previous method.

Unlock via cable

This method is a bit technical and time consuming so people prefer to get the job done by any technical person rather than wasting their own time. This method demands the use of special data cable and software.

If you fail to unlock your phone with the help of a code, then you can give this method a try. You can either pay to get the job done or can do it yourself if you are a technology expert. Be very careful if you are trying it yourself because this method is quite complex and demands full attention.

Before getting started, buy yourself a data cable and download a free software. Note that the unlocking clip varies depending on the brand and mobile set so purchase the one that is most suitable for your handset.

Still Helpless?

If you have tried everything and still own a locked phone that is worthless, then it’s wise that you sell it out and earn some cash.

Day Trading Cryptocurrencies – Profit from the Volatility of Bitcoin, Ether & Co.

cryptocurrency trading

Turn 500 USD into over 10,000 USD within a week? Sounds frivolous? It usually is, but with cryptocurrencies everything is possible. Bitcoin and especially smaller cryptocurrencies have extremely high fluctuations. If you trade them leveraged, the potential is almost limitless.

But first an important risk note: Leveraged trading with cryptocurrencies is very risky. There is the possibility of losing all your invested capital. You should always only trade with capital that you have left! Day trading is usually not a way to get rich quickly and even if you can make your first trade within minutes, it often takes several months or even years until you master, especially the mental challenges.

If the risk is ok for you, I will introduce you today to the basics of cryptotrading, i.e. short-term trading with cryptocurrencies. This is a completely different approach than long-term investing in cryptocurrencies, because we can’t care about the quality of the individual currencies and their long-term value stability or development. Furthermore, we can profit from both rising and falling exchange rates! So even if the media say the Bitcoin is dead again, you can profit this way.

I will not go into the basics of day trading any further. You can find them in books about Daytrading for beginners or in video courses.

What are cryptocurrencies?

A cryptocurrency is a form of digital money, which is based on the blockchain technology with a few exceptions. Another basis is cryptography, from where the name cryptocurrency is derived. Cryptography prevents transactions from being manipulated or money from being spent twice.

Already today besides cash there is also so-called book money, which is also entirely digital. Book money is used everywhere where cashless payments are made in the form of credit cards, cheques, transfers etc. Despite its widespread use, book money is not legal tender in Germany, for instance. It is created by depositing cash in a bank account or by granting a loan.

Cryptocurrencies are a form of book money, but no banks are necessary. They can be generated decentrally by anyone using cryptographic calculation processes. Just like book money, they represent a claim for cash, but are currently not legal tender in Germany, unlike in other countries such as Japan or Australia. It is precisely this independence that some established banks and government bodies are naturally concerned about.

In crypto-currencies, a distinction is made between Bitcoin and all other so-called alternative coins, or Altcoins. On coinmarketcap.com you will find a comprehensive overview of the most important cryptocurrencies with their market capitalization. There are currently already well over 2000 different Altcoins and more are added regularly. However, the performance of these Altcoins is currently always very much dependent on Bitcoin as the “digital reserve currency”.

Crypto currencies are divided into tokens, often called coins or digital coins, which can be further divided depending on the currency.

A Bitcoin, for example, can be divided into 100 million parts. This hundred millionth part of a Bitcoin is named after the pseudonym of its inventor Satoshi. So just like a USD is divided into 100 cents, a crypto currency is further divided and can be bought in even the smallest parts. So even if the Bitcoin just costs 5,000 USD, you can simply buy 0.01 Bitcoin for only 50 USD. This 50 USD investment alone would have become many thousands of USD if you had bought at the right time.

As a daytrader you do not have to deal with the technical basics, the block chain and the cryptography behind it. Therefore I will leave it at this short introduction to the topic cryptocurrencies.

Where does the value of cryptocurrencies come from?

The concept of crypto-currencies sounds to many at first like a money printing machine that everyone can put up at home and a little bit it is. But strictly speaking, governments and banks are doing nothing else, especially with the current financial policies in the EU and the US creating masses of money without any real value to buy government bonds and postpone the consequences of the financial crisis.

The value of a crypto-currency, like almost any other means of payment, is created solely by the fact that people believe in its value. Behind government money are banks, countries, governments or alliances of states such as the European Monetary Union. These generate a certain trust in means of payment such as the USD.

It is similar with crypto currencies. Millions of people and institutions worldwide have agreed to believe in the value of crypto-currencies. The value (exchange rate) of the respective currency is then derived from the usual market processes of supply and demand, which we will look at in detail later.

The fact that Bitcoins have no real equivalent value is one of the most common counter-arguments used against crypto currencies. But what real value does a 50 USD note have in its pocket? What is the real value of a painting by Picasso? The answer is easier than expected: It’s always exactly what someone is willing to give for it.

If someone gives you 1,000 USD for a Bitcoin, it is worth 1,000 USD, and if someone gives you 100,000 USD for a Bitcoin, it is worth 100,000 USD. As crypto-currencies and the technology behind them become more widespread, the value of some of these crypto-currencies will increase many times over in the next few years.

Crypto currencies are often much more than just currencies or means of payment. Many represent shares and rights in technological projects and companies and are more comparable to shares, especially because some also have fixed dividends analogous to shares. The value of these crypto-currencies thus also results from the companies and projects behind them.

The good thing is, in day trading we don’t care if a crypto currency rises or falls. We always profit. It is only important to understand the market mechanisms behind it and we will look at them in detail later.

The requirements for day trading with cryptocurrencies

First of all, the good news: In order to trade crypto-currencies at short notice, the same conditions as for “normal” day trading with stocks or other financial products have to be fulfilled. I have again compiled a short checklist for you here:

You have understood the necessary theory of price formation and trading on the stock exchange (You can learn the basics in a video course).
You have the necessary hardware for trading, like a good computer and fast and stable internet connection, maybe also a mobile phone with a Bitcoin trading app when on the go.
You have opened a trading account and installed the Metatrader trading software ( Open a trading account / Video instructions Account opening and Metatrader installation ).

The good thing is: The broker AvaTrade recommended on the site supports also the leveraged trading with the most important crypto currencies.
You have either decided for a demo account or you have deposited the necessary starting capital (details about the necessary starting capital you can find here)
You have prepared your trading diary (details on how to create the trading diary can be found here)

Note: Please make sure that you have completed all points. Especially trading plan and trading diary should be prepared! Trading is apparently so easy because you can earn money with a few clicks, but in the long run I guarantee you, it is not always easy and without a reasonable plan and a control possibility, your chances of success are very low!

The two ways to trade cryptocurrencies (CFDs and Exchanges)

You can buy crypto-currencies directly on the one hand, which is successful with so-called Exchanges. These work like the good old exchange office and simply exchange your money from USD into the respective cryptocurrency. This whole process is a bit more complicated at the moment and since you have no leverage here, I will not discuss it further in this article.

The second option is trading CFDs (Contract for Difference) or futures, as is possible with the broker AvaTrade, for example. The good thing is, you don’t have to deal with all the basics. The buy/sell is done comfortably by mouse click as with normal shares or currencies as well.

The exciting thing about CFDs and Futures is that you can easily profit from falling prices and trade leveraged positions. Especially for day traders and very short holding periods this is a very interesting possibility. CFDs are well suited for beginners, as they require a lower starting capital. We will not look at futures any further here for the time being.

Contract for Differences (CFDs) are a derivative and a leverage product. If the Bitcoin is worth 3,000 USD, the CFD on the Bitcoin is also worth 3,000 USD. The CFD therefore always exactly reflects the value of the respective crypto currency. It is just a simplification of trading, as CFDs can be bought and sold normally through your broker, without delays or complicated transactions.

The advantages of trading cryptocurrencies via CFDs

The brokers offer you an infrastructure with professional trading programs, which has been established for many years, and therefore mostly the easier trading, because no additional accounts are needed and the exchange into “real money” currencies is done automatically.

The brokers are so-called market makers, which means that you do not trade with other market participants, but directly with the broker. There is therefore always sufficient liquidity available.

The recommended brokers are all state-regulated and regulated by various financial supervisory authorities and offer deposit protection.

Contract for Differences (CFDs) are a derivative and a leveraged product. So if the Bitcoin is worth 3,000 USD, the CFD on the Bitcoin is also worth 3,000 USD.

Which cryptocurrencies are suitable for short-term trading?

You should pay attention to two characteristics:

High liquidity: That means that the currency is traded a lot.
A high volatility: The price fluctuations, which is almost always the case with crypto currencies.

In the following, I will name a number of crypto-currencies with which you can start:

  • Bitcoin (BTC)
  • Litecoin (LTC)
  • Ethereum (ETH)
  • EOS (EOS)
  • Ripple (XRP)
  • Stellar (XLM)
  • Bitcoin Cash (BCC/BCH)
  • DigitalCash (DASH)
  • ZCash (ZEC)
  • NEO (NEO)
  • Cardano (ADA)
  • Tron (TRX)
  • Monero (XMR)
  • Bitcoin Gold (BTG)
  • NEM (XEM)

The first Trade

Once you have opened the trading account and downloaded the Metatrader trading software, you can start trading practically. The video below shows the opening and installation.

After that you will find in the list of trading symbols the different crypto currencies with their respective abbreviations as shown above.

Anti-Social-VR: A Plea for Virtual Reality Isolation

Facebooks VR-Mantra is called “Defy Distance”. The social network ultimately wants to connect people with virtual reality. But the role of the medium can also be interpreted quite differently.

Our regular readers will know, that VR is getting really big these days. Virtual reality is not exactly a social medium. If you wear VR glasses, you interrupt the communication channel in both directions: Outsiders can only participate in the VR user’s experience to a limited extent, while the VR user in turn almost completely hides the environment.

This does not happen incidentally, but is a condition of virtual reality: physical reality is replaced instead of superimposed, unlike augmented reality. This, of course, inhibits the success of the medium. After all, humans are social creatures. Sit down with your partner in the evening, put on your VR glasses and say goodbye to the shared space? Difficult.

Even with asymmetric VR games, Second Screen or passing on VR glasses, virtual reality only becomes a social experience to a limited extent.

In Virtual Reality one is usually (still) alone.

Now VR technology is likely to become increasingly permeable in the future, for example by means of new displays or advanced video viewing mode, in which the recordings of the tracking cameras integrated in the housing are streamed into the VR glasses. There are apps where you can experience a female orgasm right in front of you. Playing tricks on a VR user who plays Beat Saber on the street: That still works quite well at the moment. With Oculus Quest 2, on the other hand, such an evildoer could quickly catch one.

But more permeable VR glasses don’t solve the problem: they allow VR users to switch more easily and quickly between digital and physical reality and thus participate in the environment. But the other way round is blocked to outsiders. The schism of reality brought about by virtual reality thus remains.

Of course, one could now demand that everyone wear VR glasses, so that the virtual becomes a shared space. But that won’t happen so quickly. Even Facebook boss Mark Zuckerberg now knows that.

Understanding isolation as a strength of the medium

The good news: All this is not so bad, even if the antisocial character of Virtual Reality could prevent it from appealing to a lot of people for a long time. Instead of trying to make virtual reality social, it might be better to focus on isolating people. Like Oculus Chief Technology Officer John Carmack.

“I’m the troublemaker because I stand up for the power of isolation,” Carmack said quite heretically at last year’s Oculus Connect, calling Virtual Reality “headphones for the eyes. Carmack is right. Because there are undoubtedly experiences you’d rather do alone and actions you’d better solo.

Better alone than in pairs

I am thinking of things that require a direct, undistracted and concentrated reference and engagement with an object: for example virtual exorcism, gardening or a journey to the realm of the dead. Would these activities necessarily be better if someone were still present?

And why should it be bad to voluntarily go into isolation for an hour from time to time? Virtual Reality is the ideal medium to get away from the noise and stress of everyday life and to collect oneself. Just like reading, which has long since been accepted by society, even when people deliberately ignore their environment. What is the difference? Probably just the fact that people wearing VR glasses seem strange. But even that could change one day in the distant future.

Avoid geoblocking: Access over 1000 streaming services worldwide via VPN

Streaming services such as Netflix, Amazon Prime Video or Hulu are very popular worldwide. However, the providers provide different content per country or region. In Germany, for example, there are no plans to download Netflix US. We’ll explain how you can use a VPN to easily avoid geoblocking.

That’s why PureVPN is perfect for streaming

The times when we went to the video store on Friday evening to rent a DVD are slowly but surely over. There is still exactly one blockbuster video store worldwide and more and more people are using digital on-demand and streaming services such as Netflix or Amazon Prime Video. Not only is this convenient and convenient, it also allows you to view content from around the world.

From the latest movies to popular TV shows to high-class documentaries and sports (see https://ventsmagazine.com/2019/07/05/dont-miss-your-favorite-sports-outside-the-usa/) – the variety of available content is huge. However, there are also restrictions on streaming. Many providers have geographical restrictions, as content varies from region to region. In Germany, for example, it is not possible to retrieve content from the US Netflix database or to use the music streaming service Pandora.

Simply bypass country blocks via VPN

The reason why many providers do not offer their content in every country is because of the different broadcasting licences of the content. If Netflix or even a television station owns the license for a TV show only in one country, it will not be broadcast in other regions. Another reason can be a government order, for example if a government only wants to distribute certain content nationwide. The same problem occurs when you try to access foreign games on your wii, as you can read here.

In which country a user is staying, the provider can usually identify the IP address that provides information about a country, region or network. One way to disguise your origin and retrieve blocked content is to use a Virtual Private Network (VPN) such as Pure VPN.

A VPN allows you to manipulate your own location and pretend to be streaming providers, you are in the USA, for example. So it is possible to retrieve the actually blocked content without any problems. But the use of a VPN service does not only have the advantage that you can bypass country blocks. It also has the advantage that your data is transmitted securely encrypted.
More than 5000 movies and series from Netflix US streaming

Netflix is considered the forefather of video streaming services and has grown from an online DVD rental company to a leader in video-on-demand. The company offers more than 5,000 TV shows, movies, documentaries and other content in the U.S. alone. Some of these are purchased content, but more and more series and films are also being produced by Netflix itself – the so-called “Netflix Originals” or “Netflix Originals”.

  1. These include top-class and internationally acclaimed series such as “Stranger Things”, “Dead Girls Don’t Lie” or “Narcos”.
  2. Every month Netflix updates its catalogue and records new films or series, replacing a fraction of old content.
  3. The prices for Netflix start here in Germany at 7.99 Euro per month.
  4. In the basic subscription you can watch movies in SD quality and use the service on a current device. You pay 10,99 Euro for the “standard” tariff, in which you can use Netflix with two devices at the same time.
  5. Content is available in HD quality. The “Premium” subscription, with which you can access selected content in 4K HDR and stream it simultaneously with four devices, costs 13.99 euros.

Stream US content from Amazon Prime outside the USA

One of Netflix’s main competitors is Amazon Prime Video. The service offers a flat rate offer for films, series or documentaries on the one hand, and content that is not part of the flat rate can be rented or purchased on the other. The offer costs 69 euros per year or 7.99 euros per month and also offers other advantages such as free shipping or access to Amazon Prime Music.

Streaming service from mail order company With Amazon Video, the mail order company has established one of the most important video streaming services in Germany. In our detailed test report you can read everything worth knowing about prices, quality, content offers and compatible devices.

  • Unlike Netflix, Amazon Prime only offers one tariff. This also means that, unlike Netflix, you don’t have to pay any extra to access content in 4K HDR. The service currently has around 100 million users, about 48 million fewer than Netflix.
  • A subscription to Amazon Prime Video contains an equally diverse content catalogue and produces its own series and films, as does its competitor. These include the successful series “The Man in the High Castle”, “Goliath” and “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel”.
  • The free and cross-platform media player software “Kodi” is popular with many users because of its versatile possibilities. In addition, all conceivable streaming services can be bundled and centrally managed in the program.

Kodi was originally developed for the Xbox, but now also runs on Linux, FreeBSD, Windows, macOS, Apple tvOS, Apple iOS and Android. Often the software is also used together with a Raspberry Pi as a media center.
The platforms and sources that are streamed via Kodi can be implemented in the software using add-ons, for example. However, many foreign sources are also subject to the country lock. In order to be able to use Kodi to its full extent, it is a good idea to use a VPN service.

Netflix, Amazon Prime Video or Kodi are just a small selection of streaming platforms. PureVPN gives you access to over 1,000 streaming channels and services from anywhere. The provider currently operates more than 2,000 servers at 189 different locations. You can set up PureVPN on over 25 different systems, including smartphones, tablets, game consoles, notebooks and routers. You can use the service on up to five devices at the same time.

In addition to fast servers that offer a smooth and buffer-free streaming experience, the VPN service focuses on privacy and data protection. PureVPN uses a 256-bit AES encryption algorithm to ensure the security and confidentiality of user data. So with this VPN, you’re not only fast and cross-country, you’re also safe on the road.

 

Controversial Darknet law: Will Tor and VPN soon be banned?

The Federal Ministry of the Interior wants to crack down on “Darknet markets” and define a new criminal offence. But vague formulations could also place operators of gate relays or VPNs under general suspicion and deter normal users. Now the “Reporters Without Borders” association is also speaking out against the draft law. The number of VPNs is still increasing!

Drugs, weapons, child pornography – in Darknet there are all that. As early as January, North Rhine-Westphalia therefore submitted a bill to the Bundesrat calling for “the introduction of independent criminal liability for the operation of Internet-based trading platforms for illegal goods and services”. In mid-March, after some discussion, the Bundesrat passed a bill on this basis. The draft contains 24 pages explaining why it should be easier for investigating authorities to take criminal action against operators of illegal trading platforms in Darknet. A simpler summary in natural language can be found here.

People will continue to use VPN software anyway, it is widely used for watching netflix and other providers outside the US, read on at macsecurity.net.

Meanwhile also the renowned association Reporters without borders expressed itself on its web page against the bill. With the draft threatens anonymization services the out. In its press release the arguments of the interior ministry specified in the bill are not called legally durable in the bill.

Darknet law: that’s what the draft says

  • TOR Browser is very popular with users who want to protect themselves from tracking on the Internet. According to the draft, there should be a new criminal offence under §126 a, which concerns the offer of services to enable criminal offences.
  • Specifically, it is intended to deal with Internet-based services that operate “in networks that are limited in terms of access and reachability”.
  • This is the official German translation for Darknet marketplaces dealing in narcotics, child pornography or weapons. A list of these offences can be found in the draft under sentence .
  • The operators of Darknet marketplaces could thus also be punished if they offer services abroad but make illegal crimes possible domestically.
  • There is a risk of imprisonment for up to three years.

Criticism of the Darknet bill

The bill also states that the Darknet is not only home to criminals. The Federal Council, however, justifies its proposal with the argument that the current legal situation does not offer sufficient criminal sanctions against operators of Darknet marketplaces. One could prosecute these so far only over aiding and abetting, which is difficult to prove however usually. The decision over the draft lies now with the German Bundestag and not only with politicians the opinions go far apart. Prof. Dr. Matthias Bäcker, Professor of Public Law and Information Law at the Johannes Gutenberg University in Mainz, is heavily critical of the bill.

Like other critics, the expert criticises the preventive use of criminal law. What is to be understood by “facilitating and promoting criminal offences” is not clear, but rather that criminal liability is brought forward, because the provision of Internet services is punishable under the planned regulation regardless of whether an unlawful main offence exists at all. If peas are counted, the operation of a Tor relay or VPN service could be interpreted as “enabling”. Normal users who, for example, use the Tor browser in order not to be tracked by tracking services while surfing could feel criminalized. And, of course, the general question arises as to whether the new law is necessary at all, because trafficking in drugs, weapons and child pornography is prohibited either way, whether inside or outside Darknet.

Bitcoin soon 10,000 dollars again

Bitcoin, please! The crypto currency now also attracts asset managers. At the weekend the cyber currency continued its rally and reached a new one-year high.

The dead live longer. In December 2018, the Bitcoin was still trading at around 3,000 dollars. But since April the crypto currency has only known one direction upwards: The exchange rate has more than doubled within two months. Yesterday, Sunday, the price on the Bitstamp trading platform shot up to 9,387 dollars. This is the highest level for 13 months. In the meantime the price has come back a little. Currently, the crypto lead currency still costs 9,167 dollars.

If you haven`t bought any BTC yet, this is your chance. Bitcoin has become part of many peoples lifes, like gambling with BTC in online casinos, and that is also a reason for the recent boom. Find yourself a trustful exchange like Basefex and be part of the BTC community! Basefex is reviewed on this site.

“The $10,000 mark is now within striking distance,” writes Bitcoin expert Timo Emden of Emden Research. The increased prices are likely to lead short-term speculators to make an investment in Bitcoin. Emden warns, however, of the threat of setbacks. “Investors should prepare for both directions, the danger of a crash remains present.” Profit taking currently seems tempting.

“Facebook Coins” cast their shadows

According to Bitcoin expert Timo Emden from Emden Research, Bitcoin is currently the biggest beneficiary of the imminent Facebook coin. The leading social network will soon announce its plans for its own payment system with its own crypto currency, American media report. Most recently, the Wall Street Journal had reported on an investment by various companies such as Mastercard, Visa, Paypal and Uber in the project under the name “Libra”.

Also in supermarkets and many shops the digital coins are accepted increasingly as means of payment. At the organic supermarket chain Whole Foods or at Starbucks in the USA you can pay with Bitcoins.

Pay VPN anonymously? Why this does not bring anonymity.

Many readers keep asking us whether it makes sense to pay for the VPN service anonymously. The idea behind this is that the anonymity should be improved. We think, however, that there are no sufficient reasons for the assumption. In the following we explain what speaks for and also against it.

An anonymous payment of VPN services speaks for itself:

In countries where the use of a VPN service could attract the attention of the government or where it is even prohibited by law, such as Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain or China, the surveillance of payment service providers can lead to the authorities’ cross-hairs for citizens living there. This concerns however purely inhabitants of these states also your credit cards or bank connections within these countries have! A foreigner normally makes his payments through foreign banks and these should remain secret.

An anonymous payment of a VPN service speaks against it:

The own internet provider can, if he does this specifically, find out in any case that the user connects via a VPN provider. The technical data relates to the destination of the VPN connections and thus theoretically also indicates the VPN provider. It is therefore impossible to keep these VPN connections secret in every case. It follows from this that it therefore makes no significant difference whether credit card companies also learn this through payments made.

If the VPN services are used correctly, it is still technically impossible to record or monitor the activities of the users.

What are secure payment methods?

This question is not easy to answer. In view of the fact that payments are made via PayPal, credit cards or bank transfers, the sender and recipient data are made known to the providers. Secret services as well as government surveillance can register this and trace every purchase.

Money recovery or conflict resolution

On the other hand, non-anonymous payment services are particularly protected from being able to retrieve the money sent in the event of irregularities or money-back guarantees. As PayPal’s buyer protection and the associated conflit solution option clearly show. With anonymous payment services, these possibilities are actually completely omitted. Anyone who has once paid a Bitcoin payment or with an anonymous prepaid card cannot object to these payments and can only hope for a voluntary repayment by the recipient of the payments.

We don’t want to present PayPal as the best payment service provider, because we don’t like the company policy of data storage and monitoring by US authorities. However, this is of course an advantage that must also be mentioned.

Bitcoin

Bitcoin is a way to achieve anonymity in payments, but there are a few things to keep in mind, because all payments made by every Bitcoin user are completely transparent and open to everyone! It is therefore very easy to find out how many Bitcoins the user of a Bitcoin address has and which payments he makes when and to whom. Anonymity is therefore only achieved if payments are always made with different IP addresses and one-time Bitcoin addresses and if you actively disguise yourself. Of course, this is associated with increased effort.

PaySafeCard

The PaySafe Card, popular in Germany, has been more and more regulated in recent years, today anonymous payments are only possible to a limited extent and at the same time it has become almost impossible to pay VPN service providers. The company was simply advised by the government to discontinue connections to VPN services, so there are only a few exceptions still offering PaySafe payments.

Starbucks Card

Another interesting possibility is to use the Starbucks Card as a PrePaid payment method, you can buy it in any Starbucks branch and load it with up to 100 USD. Some VPN services also accept them for payment.

Cash

With some providers, it is possible to pay for the services with cash. In any case, this is of course the most anonymous form of payment. These providers provide postal addresses to which the banknotes are sent in an envelope with the access code of the service. This of course takes a few days and of course you have to trust the provider. We have tested them with Perfect-Privacy and sent an amount of money to their money receiving address. It took 7 days until the money was received. But it was very anonymous, because it could not be reproduced digitally.

Bank transfer

When transferring money via your own account, you save the provider a lot of fees incurred by many payment service providers. Of course your own account details will also be known, reclaims are normally not possible through the bank. But for persons which have no other payment possibilities, this is quite interesting.

However, it is important never to agree to bank collection agreements (as with SpyOff VPN) because bank details are stored directly with the providers and they can debit any amount directly from their own account and without further consent. This carries the risk of irregularities and long disputes. We and serious payment providers reject this completely!

Serious VPN providers use external payment service providers and do not store user payment data.

VPn services usually use external payment service providers who handle payments for a small fee, which the VPN provider pays. The advantage for the VPN providers is that they can offer a larger number of payment methods without having to agree individual agreements with each payment provider directly. The advantage for the user is that the personal data that may be associated with the payment does not go directly to the VPN provider. This is also an advantage for the providers, who want to guarantee a high anonymity and privacy of the users, as they are not obliged to pay attention to the personal data of the users themselves. What you don’t have, you can’t pass on to the authorities.