Trezor created the world's first crypto hard wallet but now faces hot competition from newer rivals. I compared Trezor's Model One with the Ledger Nano S Plus to see which fared better in securing my crypto assets.

Trezor created the first cryptocurrency hard wallet. I recently spent $101 on Trezor's Model One, which is known as "the original hard wallet."

Crypto hard wallets allow for more secure storage and management of crypto assets.

They hold private keys, which are needed to unlock the address of where the crypto assets are stored on the blockchain.

Despite how complicated it sounded, I found it straightforward and quick to set up the Trezor Model One.

For months, I've had another crypto wallet, the cheaper and newer Ledger Nano S Plus, sitting on my desk.

I'd been gifted the wallet to try it but kept avoiding it because the process sounded time-consuming.

After the easy-breezy process of setting up the Trezor, I wanted to see how its competitor fared, especially since it's cheaper. The Trezor Model One costs $74 without shipping, while the Ledger Nano Plus S costs $72.

Both wallets came with similar components: the hard wallet itself, a lanyard, a USB cable, and documentation.

It felt as though the Ledger was a bit heavy on packaging compared with the Trezor.

It's not a big deal, but the sticker selection was poor relative to what the Trezor offered.

At first glance, the Ledger hard wallet looked sleeker, but it also reminded me of the memory sticks handed out during the first week at college, which I would frequently lose.

I was surprised to find I preferred the larger screen and bulkier style of the Trezor.

The setup processes for the Trezor and the Ledger were similar, taking about the same amount of time.

Ledger didn't have a browser offering like Trezor, so I had to download the desktop app.

Ledger focused more on education, explaining the basics of crypto wallets at the start and asking users to do a quiz at the end of the setup process.

I was relieved to be classified as a crypto "pro" after the quiz.

After the setup process, crypto assets can then be added into accounts on the wallet.

This was more daunting on the Ledger than on the Trezor because Ledger Live offers many more features, such as interacting with staking apps and storing nonfungible tokens.

You can even buy and sell assets from the Ledger hard wallet. I liked how Ledger offered all these additional features, while remaining competitive on price.

I also liked how the Ledger supported crypto assets like solana, which was a challenge I faced with the Trezor.

I found both to be great options for new crypto users with very little difference between them.

For complete beginners who want only to store bellwether cryptos like bitcoin and ether, the Trezor seems like the perfect option, as it's very easy to use.

If you are looking to play more with altcoins, participate in staking, or buy NFTs, Ledger would be my pick, as it offers much more at a cheaper cost.

But Ledger needs to up its game in personalization features. My friendly bitcoin cat on the Trezor is a nice touch.