Razer launches crypto mining for hardware scheme

In a rather bizarre move, gaming peripheral maker Razer launched the Razer SoftMiner. This is a new cryptocurrency-based scheme that lets users mine on their PC to score Razer rewards. You mine cryptocurrency for Razer and in exchange you receive points that can be redeemed for Razer hardware and discounts.

According to the company, users with "proper hardware" can mine about 500 Razer Silver points a day. A mouse like the Razer DeathAdder Essential can be purchased for 51000 points, which comes down to 102 days of mining.

Overall, this whole SoftMiner thing doesn't make a lot of sense. It's only worth it if your electricity is free or very cheap, but in that case you're probably better off mining crypto for yourself.

RazerTM, the leading global lifestyle brand for gamers, today announced a slew of software and services updates aimed at accelerating and enhancing the rewards gamers can earn simply by doing what they love: playing games.

Central to the new updates are the redesigned Razer Gold and Razer Silver virtual credits and rewards system. Featuring a brand-new name, look and experience, the new Razer Gold and Razer Silver enhance value for gamers as they spend on games, then reward their loyalty with exclusive Razer gear and digital prizes.

To accelerate the speed at which gamers can earn Razer Silver, Razer is bringing back the highly anticipated Paid to Play program on Razer Cortex – on both PC and mobile. Paid to Play lets gamers earn Razer Silver just by gaming.

With Razer Cortex now available for all smartphones, gamers can now double their Silver earning speed, both at home and on-the-go.

Razer is also launching a new desktop app named Razer SoftMiner, which utilizes the idle GPU processing power of gamers’ battle stations to solve complex blockchain-based puzzles on the back-end. Users are then rewarded with Razer Silver depending on the amount of time SoftMiner has been running, and the processing power of their PCs.

Razer co-founder and CEO Min-Liang Tan said, “Razer’s software and services are integral parts of our gamer-centric ecosystem and complete our gaming lifestyle promise to our fans. Today’s extensive updates send a signal to the 50 million-strong base of registered users on our software platform that we are committed to enhancing their experience within the Razer suite of products, from the humble mouse and keyboard to next-generation cutting-edge apps.”