PCR Tech and IT retail, distribution and vendor news
Computer vendor Dell has started accepting virtual currency Bitcoin as a form of payment on Dell.com.
Consumers and small businesses can now buy from the brand in the US using the digital currency.
To facilitate the new offering, Dell has partnered with third-party payment processor Coinbase. And to celebrate the announcement, Dell is cutting ten per cent off any new Alienware system purchase when payment is made using Bitcoin (up to a $150 limit).
Users can select Bitcoin as a payment method when they checkout their online shopping trolley.
“We’ve fostered a close partnership with the Dell team and that’s been instrumental in getting the Coinbase integration up and running in such a short timeframe [14 days]," said Coinbase co-founder Fred Ehrsam.
"We look forward to continuing to support the team as they explore other ways to offer even more functionality when it comes to Bitcoin payments."
Earlier this year PCR broke the news about Scan Computers becoming the first UK PC retailer to accept Bitcoin.
Dell SecureWorks’ BitCoin security experts Joe Stewart, director of Malware Research for the CTU, and Pat Litke, CTU security researcher, advise Dell.com customers to use a non-web-based wallet, always back up and encrypt their wallet, and ensure that the machine that is used to store the Bitcoin wallet is malware free.
Dell also advises its customers to consider using open-source and trusted wallet software such as Electrum or Armory, and to only use it in deterministic mode, and to move the majority of their Bitcoins to a cold-storage wallet – then move them to a ‘hot’ wallet when they are ready to be spent.
More information is over at Dell.com/bitcoin.
