### Introduction
Long ago, my safe place to keep money was a piggy bank. Every lad of my age pose of having two to three piggy banks where they keep money. It was the best thing we ever thought. Each time we have any amount, we quickly run to our room, pick our bag and slot in the money into our small bank. At the end of the month, we break it and count how much we’ve saved. That was how we lived for a long time until we had another way of keeping our money.
A daily contribution was the next thing I involved in saving my money. The person comes, gives you a card, and you save your money with him. The card serves as a piece of evidence to show that you are a customer, and he registers every dime you contribute. He takes one percent of your total savings at the end of the month, but your money is in safe hands.
As time went on, many people ventured into the business, and crime rate increased. I will never forget one Mr. Ajanlekoko that took away my money after contributing for a month. That was the last time I used the method. Opening a bank account was difficult then as I’ve not come of age. So I couldn’t do anything than to keep my money in a safe place in the house.
The bank is now the most popular means of saving money. Many people saves their money and transfer to other people through the banks because it seems to be the most trusted means. However, the existence of crypto-currency has created another means of saving, sending and receiving money (crypto) apart from the bank. Back in 2009, the first decentralized crypto emerged, which in time gave birth to over 2000 crypto-currencies. Since crypto-currency is a digital asset designed to work as a medium of exchange, there needs to be a safe house for it. This safe house is what we refer to as a wallet.
As I’ve earlier mentioned, there are over 2000 crypto-currencies of which each has its wallet, but I will talk about one in my article. Thanks for taking the time to go through my blog. Please read further as I talk about steem wallet, its components, and my experience using it.
### What is a steem wallet?
<div class=”pull-right”>https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmWS4KHVrFeKgX6gLENpQQQuWaJwjDF3A8Zred5E6TDbop/Screenshot_20190611-150014.png</div>
Before talking about steem wallet, I think it’s very important to talk about steem itself.
>Steem is a crypto-currency based on the social media and content-focused steem block-chain created on March 24, 2016, by Ned Scott and the block-chain developer Dan Larimer. In terms of total market capitalization, steem is ranked at place 40, with a market capitalization of more than 159 million USD.
The creation of Steem is a mixed idea of both crypto-currency and social media. The social media associated with it is Steemit. It is a platform where anyone can create contents and get rewarded with Steem token through an upvote. Steemit is meritocratic, which makes every category of people fit in.
***Steem wallet is a crypto-currency wallet built on the Steem block-chain to enable users to send/receive Steem and SBD. It also enables users to monitor their balance. Currently ranked at #467 on the [stateofthedapps](https://www.stateofthedapps.com/dapps/steemwallet) as at when this article was published***.
Apart from Steemit, which is the basis of Steem token, we have other projects on the steem block-chain. That is where I came across the [steem wallet]( https://steemwallet.app/). Steemit itself has a wallet, but Steem wallet is an application built by Rolandp. I came across it long ago but started using it a few months back. I’ve had a smooth experience using Steem wallet. Thus, I would love to share some insight about it.
### How I started using Steem wallet.
As an open source enthusiast, I contribute my quota to different open source projects on GitHub and get rewards through utopian.
That’s what led me to use Steem wallet. I saw it on GitHub, downloaded it from [google play]( https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=app.steemwallet.roelandp) and started using it. I got some ideas and submitted it on GitHub, but it wasn’t reckoned with because it’s not part of the projects plan I guess. After that, I continued using it, and it’s been one of my favorite means of transferring Steem/SBD.
### Getting started
If you would like to use Steem wallet, download it from [google play]( https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=app.steemwallet.roelandp) or[IOS store]( https://itunes.apple.com/app/steemwallet/id1428700017) and get started. The first thing you need to do after launching is to add your account. These are the steps I followed when adding mine for transaction eligibility.
<div class=”pull-left”>https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmUW5yz2szsBnvRk86rcHBMZDXCJ2YprwWHnHzpWRtQYPS/Screenshot_20190610-154402.png</div>
<div class=”pull-left”>https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmXAyCx1oTT61BgaFNxZEoroTU8yDG63EXZ8GUHjK7aL7m/Screenshot_20190610-154513.png</div>
- I created a wallet by adding my account and creating a strong paraphrase. This differs from the normal keys used to secure the Steemit account or the Steemit wallet. It is an extra security measure taken to further secure your tokens on steem wallet.
After creating a paraphrase by clicking the send feature and following the steps displayed, I input my Steemit active key, confirmed my paraphrased words, and finally created my account. Sending and receiving Steem/SBD becomes easy with these set up.
- After creating my account on Steem wallet, I could send my tokens to various destinations. As you can see from the below image, I filled the necessary spaces and initiated my transaction easily. Steem wallet also has a receiving feature. I could scan the QR code to get the address that people can send Steem/SBD to.
### There’re other features, let’s explore
<div class=”pull-right”>https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmVbp1jyvHWNpRqoV8JxSQTbNArnN9MUe8gn4Hq3fCmWSa/Screenshot_20190611-080420.png</div>
- ***Currency***: Steem wallet has over 40 currencies. Users can set their fund to display in different currencies depending on their choice. I prefer the dollar sign, so it displays all my funds in dollars.
- ***Theme***: There’s not much in the theme. It has a light, dark, navy red and young pink theme. I only like the white and dark theme. Others are okay, but they are not my colour.
- ***Create account***: You can use an in-app payment to instantly register a new account on the Steem chain. I’ve never opened an account through it so I don’t know the cost, but I’m sure it can’t be a killing billing. If you need another steemit account or you want to open for someone, try steem wallet account creation and get the account working instantly.
- ***Buy steem***: This feature is connected to block trade. So before you can buy steem through steem wallet, you must have an account with block trade. It’s easy. Just sign up, confirm through the confirmation message sent to your email and sign in. You can then purchase steem/sbd.
### Comparing steem wallet with a similar app
<center></center>
Both steem and doge wallet are crypto-currency wallets that are used to transfer and receive tokens, but they are different in some ways. Setting up a steem wallet differs from how a doge wallet is set up. Steem wallet requires you to have an existing steem account while you are only required to set up a doge wallet using your email account. So the difference here is that you will need to sign up on steemit to use the steem wallet, which is not so in the case of doge wallet.
They both have a QR code reader for easy importing of keys/wallet address and, they also generate codes for others to send to.
***What I dislike about steem wallet***
Well, I know nothing can be perfect, that’s why steem wallet has its lagging area. The UI is not attractive. The themes are not vibrant, which makes the interface look dull. However, the purpose of the wallet is not bridged, so I would say it is not a barrier. So far I can send and receive steem/sbd successfully, I am okay.
***What I love about steem wallet***
If you have multiple accounts, you can monitor your account balance easily with steem wallet.
You can also use touch id and face id for retrieving your paraphrase.
There’s an encrypted storage for keys should you want to sign transfer operation. (steem/sbd)
### Conclusion
I’ve been enjoying using steem wallet for most of my transactions. It’s easy to use and secure. You can start using it now. Download it, create a paraphrase. Add your active or private key into your encrypted wallet and start sending and receiving steem/sbd with other stuff it offers.
Thanks for reading.
This is ckole(the laughing gas)
[Github repo]( https://github.com/roelandp/steemwallet?utm_source=StateOfTheDApps)
