Ethereum switches to Proof of Stake -- the end of GPU mining?

Earlier this week, the Ethereum Foundation confirmed big changes are coming to Ethereum in the coming months. Ethereum will switch from a Proof of Work (PoW) to a Proof of Stake (PoS) model to confirm transactions on the blockchain -- and this has a couple of profound implications.

One of the major disadvantages of most cryptocurrencies is their massive power consumption. By switching to a PoS modem, Ethereum intends to become a much greener cryptocurrency. At the moment, it's estimated that that Ethereum miners consume about 5.13GW of power, the equivalent of the total output of a couple of large nuclear reactors. After the switch to a PoS model, this figure is expected to drop a staggering 99.95 percent! Basically, about the maximum output of an average onshore wind turbine.

Another way to look at it is to compare the energy consumption per transaction. For Bitcoin, a single transaction requires a massive 1,135,000Wh. The current Ethereum blockchain requires 84,000Wh and after the switch to PoS this figure will decline to just 35Wh.

The end of GPU mining?

Hexus points out this could be the end of GPU mining -- at least when it concerns Ethereum. As the switch to PoS approaches, the market may get flooded by video cards that were used for mining:

ETH currently has a quite particular balance of GPU minability, and profitability due to its valuation, that have made GPU hardware mining so popular. Some reckon that there isn't a comparable cryptocurrency that could absorb a diversion of PoW power from ETH without becoming much more difficult to mine and basically making the job impractical/unprofitable in short-order. -- Hexus