SOLO-LV02 USB Bitcoin Miner Promises to Mine Bitcoins, But It's Just a Very Expensive Lottery Ticket

Bitcoin mining now requires expensive machines, so I was surprised when I saw the Lucky Miner SOLO-LV02 cryptocurrency mining “machine” going for about $24 on AliExpress

The article on CNX Software discusses a surprising find on AliExpress - a cryptocurrency mining “machine” called Lucky Miner SOLO-LV02 for about $24.

The small USB-powered box is capable of mining coins with the SHA-256 algorithm, and it features a 1.9-inch display, WiFi connectivity, and two buttons. According to the description, the device can mine BTC, BCH, BSV, DGB, and more.

Considering the really low hashrate of 78 kH/s, it’s more like an extremely expensive lottery ticket for Bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies, and the luckiest ones may get one Bitcoin block (3.125 BTC).

The SOLO-LV02 specifications:

The user just needs to scan the QR code on the display to configure Wi-Fi and enter a Bitcoin address (or other token), and from there, the “Lucky Miner” will automatically try to mine cryptocurrencies. Another option is to log in to the device with SSID “LuckyMinerAP” and password “MineYourCoins”.

Like any lottery ticket, you may be interested in knowing the odds. So I asked Grok, and the odds of winning a Bitcoin block in a year are 1 in 210.7 trillion, or the equivalent of winning the lottery several times in a row. The odds would be better with alternative coins like Bitcoin Cash, but if the goal is to win something, the SOLO-LV02 is just electronic waste. It might still have educational purposes or can be purchased as a collectible.

The description stipulates the device relies on a “cutting-edge 5nm ASIC chip”, but the low hashrate implies that may not be the case, and the low price and WiFi connectivity made me think it could be based on an ESP32 chip instead.

Sure enough, there’s a project called “NerdSoloMiner v2” that runs on ESP32-C3, ESP32-S3, ESP32 hardware, and allows you to build a similar DIY project using LILYGO T-Display S3 and a 3D printed enclosure. The NerdMiner v2 relies on this project and delivers 78 kH/s like the SOLO-LV02 covered in this article.

This type of device is called a solo miner, and there are others based on BM1366 ASIC with a hashrate up to 1TH/s, such as the SOLO-LV07 ($112 on Amazon) with much better odds. But remember, it’s still an expensive lottery ticket with odds of about 1 in 15.17 million per year.

If you’d like to purchase the SOLO-LV02 for fun, you’ll find it on AliExpress for about $24, and on Amazon for $35.