So it has officially been over a month since I have been running the Pre-Elite Edge Node and staking TFUEL with it. I have been waiting for this day to be able to give you a more overall opinion on it. I will always be a believer and supporter in the THETA network as it has a huge potential.
During the month there was an update to the Edge Node where it transcodes video periodically and you earn some TFUEL for it. So that was a nice added benefit.
Cache/Compute
For the month of January I have earned 131.6663 TFUEL for running the Edge Compute. Do I think this is worth it for the average user? Not really. What is really does is runs Folding@Home and you earn TFUEL for it. I think running Folding@Home is a game changer and everyone should do it to help out the world and feel good about themselves. BUT if you have a crappy computer then it might not be worth it for you.
The Edge Cache on the other hand caches video's being streamed on the Theta network to viewers across the world. You are basically relaying video to people. It doesn't run 24/7 because it is dependent on what people want to watch at any given time. That is why having both running (Cache and Compute) is nice.
Stake TFUEL
I have been staking 10,550 TFUEL to the Edge Node for the whole month. Snapshot are taken basically twice a day and your pending earning are then updated. You receive the Staking rewards at the end of the month at the same time your payout for the Cache/Compute gets paid.
Is it worth it? I think that is an easy answer. Staking any token is worth it, because it is all profit. I had the TFUEL sitting in a wallet anyways so why not stake it and earn a little more? 10,000 is the minimum staking amount so it's a high level of entry for every day people. However if you have amassed a little nest egg of TFUEL then it's a great option. 20 TFUEL for staking 10,000+ for a whole month seems low but it is what it is I guess.
All in all this month I earned 152.2812 TFUEL for running the Edge Node. At the current value that is $4.33. So I made $4 this month for doing nothing but letting one of my VM's run 24/7. Does that cover electricity costs? I don't know and to be honest I don't have the time or patience to figure it out. What I can tell you though is getting another 152 TFUEL is great and who knows is the price of TFUEL goes up to $0.10 once day then what I earned this month would be $15.22 and that I can guarantee would cover the electricity costs.
