FAQ

Helium Miners are tiny computers (the size of a network router) that can transmit data received by radio waves to the internet, and from one miner to another. The purpose is to create a worldwide network that can be used by Internet of Things devices.

The amount of HNT that can be earned depends on several factors. First, the strength of the antenna, which plays a big role in the number of other miners that can be communicated with. Secondly, the location of the miner. It needs to be close to other helium miners so that they are within range and can communicate with each other. Third, how often your hotspot is used to transmit data from Internet of Things devices.
By comparing the earnings of existing miners, you can make an estimate of how much HNT you will earn.
Check out the Helium Coverage Map to see the earnings of other miners in Europe to compare.

HNT is the native coin of the Helium network (along with Data Credits, more on that in the next question). HNT is mined by Helium hotspot miners and sent to hotspot owners as a reward for providing coverage and data transfer on the network. HNT can be exchanged to Euros.

Helium Data Credits are used by end users of the Helium network to pay for sending data through the network. Unlike HNT, Data Credits are not exchangeable and are tied to the purchaser until used.
The purchase of Data Credits is comparable to the purchase of prepaid phone credit. A user pays only for the actual use of the network. As with prepaid phone credit, the credit is not transferable.
Data Credits can only be purchased by converting HNT to DC. Any Helium Token converted to DC in this way will be permanently burned and thus removed from the overall HNT circuit.
1 Data Credit can be used to send 24 bytes of data, rounded up to the next 24 bytes.

A Helium Miner consumes between 1 and 2 GB of data per day, which is not a problem with an unlimited data subscription. You can compare it to having another person in the house who watches a few hours of Netflix every day.

A helium miner consumes hardly any energy. On an annual basis, it’s about €9-10. That’s around €0.026 per day. Compared to a Bitcoin miner, the amount is negligible. The reason that the power is so low is that this miner does not have to perform complex calculations like Bitcoin miners.

All Helium Hotspot miners operate the same way. The biggest difference between the various Helium miners can be found in the stock antenna that is provided. As Bobcat comes with a 4 dBi stock antenna, this hotspot can be considered the best Helium Miner.

The cheapest Helium Miner is the Linxdot Helium Miner. This is because the shipping and tax costs are much lower than other hotspots, as this miner comes from within Europe.