Although Litecoin is one of the world’s pioneer cryptocurrencies, many people don’t discuss it much. Focus is usually on Bitcoin, Ethereum and other networks mostly considered as ‘Ethereum Killers’.
Now that we don’t hear much about Litecoin, does that mean its obsolete? Read on to find the answer to that and other questions like:
- What can make Litecoin obsolete
- How to mine Litecoin
- Uses of Litecoin
Is Litecoin Obsolete?
No. Litecoin isn’t obsolete. Litecoin is still an active cryptocurrency today. You can trade it in the markets, use it for transactions and build DeFi solutions on its OmniLite Layer.
Can Litecoin Be Obsolete?
The only way Litecoin becomes obsolete is if three concurrent things happen:
Litecoin loses its ability to store value
Most investors own LTC because it’s an alternative way to store their wealth. If Litecoin can no longer be trusted as secure storage of value, people will pull out their investments and cause Litecoin to tumble.
Litecoin fails to secure and support payment systems in the network.
Many businesses use Litecoin’s Layer 1 solution for payments today. Suppose something happens to the network and causes it to become utterly unusable as a currency. It will become obsolete.
Litecoin loses its community backing.
LItecoin depends on its community for mining and securing the network. Losing the community will expose the network to attacks and a drop in block production. At the same time, if developers and other participants abandon the Litecoin project, it stops evolving. That will make it obsolete.
Why Do Some Think It Is Obsolete?
Most people think Litecoin is obsolete for these reasons;
Weak Store of Value
Dubbed the silver to Bitcoin, most users prefer Bitcoin to Litecoin. Moreover, some other coins in the market have better market prices which would offer better value.
At the time of this writing owning 1 BTC is more value than owning 1 LTC.
Speeds
Plenty of cryptocurrencies today are faster than Litecoin. Such coins offer better transaction speeds, making them better suited for transactions than Litecoin.
Cardano (ADA) alone, for example, can run up to 250 TPS, with upcoming updates priming it to reach 1000TPS. At Cardano’s current network speeds, that’s almost five times that of Litecoin.
Consensus Mechanism
Today, there are better cryptocurrencies with faster and more efficient consensus mechanisms than Litecoin’s Proof of Work. Examples of such consensus include Cardano’s Proof of Stake, Proof of Authority, Solana’s Proof of History, and Delegated Proof of Stake.
The above consensus mechanisms are excellent alternatives to what Litecoin and Bitcoin offer. They also provide for better decentralization and scalability and are less energy-consuming.
Transaction Fees
Compared to Litecoin, other blockchain networks have relatively lower transaction fees. More affordable cryptocurrencies attract more users and developers to participate.
For instance, Ripple (XRP) has a $0.00001 transaction fee, much lower than Litecoin’s $0.05.
What Are The Applications Of Litecoin?
Here are primary use cases for Litecoin:
Store of Value
Anyone seeking a store of value has Litecoin as an option. As time goes by, the price of Litecoin may go up, and that also means your investment increases in value.
Payment transactions
You can send or receive payments with Litecoin. Many businesses accept Litecoin payments both online and offline. Also, you can send and receive funds to your crypto wallet from other users.
Trading and Speculation
As an investor, you can trade or speculate on LTC online. You can predict a rise or slump in the price of LTC and earn interest from the spreads. For example, you can buy the LTC/USD pair when LTC is low and sell it when it’s higher.
Can Litecoin Surpass Bitcoin?
Litecoin can’t surpass Bitcoin yet.
However, with few changes on its blockchain, the future might be brighter for LItecoin. What features may propel Litecoin to outdo Bitcoin?
Introduction of Layer-2 Solutions
Blockchains with layer-2 solutions get more attention today than those that only have a base network. Layer-2 cryptos support decentralized applications and services.
With Litecoin adopting OmniLite, it has the opportunity to scale and become much larger than it already is.
Learn more: Does Litecoin Have Smart Contracts?
Change to Proof of Stake consensus
One way to make Litecoin valuable would be to switch its current consensus mechanism to the Proof of Stake model. The PoS model makes a cryptocurrency easier to scale while increasing its network speeds.
Is Bitcoin Better Than Litecoin?
Not necessarily. Although both coins have similar technology, they serve different purposes.
Bitcoin and Litecoin have different appeals. For instance, many investors pick Bitcoin for storing value. On the other hand, many users choose Litecoin because of its faster transaction speeds, lower price entry, or cheaper transactional fees.
How To Mine Litecoin?
Mining Litecoin is almost similar to mining Bitcoin. To participate in mining Litecoin, you need proper mining hardware and good blockchain knowledge. You can also join a mining pool. Here is how you can be part of Litecoin.
Choose mining hardware.
Pick the best hardware for mining Litecoin if you want it to be profitable. Although you could start with a standard computer, back in the beginning of the project, its no longer tenable. The best and most popular way to go is to use ASICs computers.
Download your Litecoin Software
After buying proper hardware, install Litecoin mining software. It provides you with the link to the Litecoin blockchain. There are several user-friendly software options with an excellent interface and usability.
Join a mining pool
Another easy way to participate in Litecoin mining is through collective mining. Partnering up with others can give you consistent returns. A perfect example of a Litecoin mining pool is the F2Pool, which rewards close to 4% PPS.
Start Mining
After setting up the above, ensure you have a working power source to power up your activity. Open a crypto wallet to store your rewards and start your journey in mining Litecoin.
Also read: 3 Best Mining Pools For KDA (Guide)
Is Litecoin Worth Investing In?
Yes. Litecoin is a worthy investment.
You can use it to store value, trade, or transact.
Also, its new layer-2 solutions makes this blockchain useful for more than just storing value.
Final Thoughts
To recap: Litecoin is not obsolete. It still has a large following of users who use it to trade the markets, make transactions and store value.
