Previously, I did a walk through of the Trust Wallet in doing so I actually quite enjoyed the fast paced summary format so I've decided to extend the series out to some other more commonly used wallets on the market. There are quite a few options out there and while it can be useful to download and have a go yourself having a quick look around the interface first can tell you if it is worth the effort for you. This time we're going to look at the recently released METAMASK mobile app wallet. I'll cover a bit of my thoughts at the end, suffice to say though, I've really enjoyed the process of using this wallet and will likely continue to do so for most of my ETH network and defi needs when I'm on the go.
About
Metamask wallet was a long time in the making and can be run on most mobile devices that can install apps. As we can see from the tagline on the main site page the goal is to provide users with a single entry point into the Ethereum network and the decentralized applications (dApps) it hosts.
Main Screen
The home screen (Part1):
- 1) Navigation bar
- 2) Specific wallet address and account/network details
- 3) Token balance and collectibles tab (if you want to see how to manage collectibles see this article by PVMihalache)
- 4) Buy ETH button
- 5) Add tokens button
- 6) After clicking 'Buy ETH' you'll see the ETH purchase options (note that the apple pay is US only)
The home screen (Part2):
- 1) After clicking '+Add Tokens' you'll be able to search for common tokens by ticker
- 2) Alternatively, it is possible to add custom tokens by contract address (you can find the contract address for tokens on etherscan)
- 3) Main menu to send/receive funds
- 4) Wallet navigation items
- 5) Select public address info and view directly on etherscan
- 6) Settings, app help and and logout
dApp Browser Screen
The dApp browser screen (accessed through the main navigation bar, Part1):
- 1) Simple search functionaility
- 2) DeFi and Dex:
- 2a) List of commonly used decentralized finance applications for well know projects
- 2b) List of some of the most well known and reliable decentralized exchanges
The dApp browser screen (accessed through the main navigation bar, Part2):
- 1) Art & collectibles and Get crypto:
- 1a) Applications for various art and collectible projects on the ETH network
- 1b) Applications for those looking to earn crypto and/or trade P2P locally
The dApp browser screen (accessed through the main navigation bar, Part3):
- 1) Developer tools and Social:
- 1a) A few nifty tools for those creative folks out there looking to develop on-chain applications themselves
- 1b) dApp social applications and developer content
Settings Screen
The setting screen (accessed through the main navigation bar, Part1):
- 1) General
- 1a) Currency settings for relative values
- 1b) Primary currency view for tokens
- 1c) Language options
- 1d) Search engine setting for the browser
- 1e) Account Identicon (the little multi-coloured block image for the account)
- 2) Advanced
- 2a) Reset account details to default
- 2b) Sync functionality for linking settings between the MetaMask desktop browser extension and the app
- 2c) IPFS Gateway settings
- 2d) Toggle for showing hex data (default is off)
- 2e) State logs for debugging issues
The setting screen (accessed through the main navigation bar, Part2):
- 1) Contacts, this section includes any address that have been saved
- 2) Security & Privacy
- 2a) Basic browsing privacy settings
- 2b) Participation in user performance data collection
- 2c) Incoming transaction scanning (allows you to see transactions coming into the wallet before they are completed)
- 2d) Clear/reset privacy and browsing data
- 3) Network
- 3a) Basic network selection
- 3b) Manual network addition button
The setting screen (accessed through the main navigation bar, Part2):
- 1) Experimental
- 1a) This is where you can view active session for links with dApps and can close the sessions
- 2) About MetaMask
- 2a) Version details
- 2b) Links for support, T&C and feedback
Final Thoughts
To go back to the original goal for this wallet as "a gateway to blockchain apps" I can honestly say they really have hit their mark. By far the best functionality is the dApp browser section and the easy with which you can find and interact with these is brilliant. In some way this is cleaner and easier to us than the desktop plugin version and much easier to find/keep track of the most well known DeFi sites. For me this kind of an app really goes a long way to support adoption as it puts everything a non-veteran ETH user needs in one place.
What I would say for anyone thinking of making the switch from Atomic, Trust, Coinbase, or any other ETH wallet, or perhap just wanting to be able to access their decentralized finances on the go then this is probably the app for you. However, a word of warning do not go down the route of creating a new wallet and transfering funds in. You'll just be throwing gas (and liquidity farming positions) down the drain. Insead follow my guide here to just link your existing ETH wallet address through MetaMask. You don't need to change ETH address just because you changed your wallet (let's face it if we had to throw out our credit cards and cash each time we bought a new wallet or purse we'd be mad!).
Linking Wallets (inc. MetaMask): How-To Guide
Remember as well if you commonly use the BRAVE Browser built in crypto wallet (a fork of MetaMask) you can also link that to your MetaMask app. Try the app out for yourself, if you're a keen DeFi enthusiast I'm sure you'll love it.
Thanks for reading, hope you enjoyed the article, good luck y'all!
If you liked this and want to read more check out my back catalogue here:https://mynima.github.io/