Next-Generation Bitcoin Mining Hardware Arrives Just in Time for BTC Halving

Bitcoin (BTC) ASIC manufacturer MicroBT has revealed its new mining hardware, boasting a hash rate of 100 terahashes per second (TH/s). This product unveiling demonstrates that competition is heating up among major ASIC manufacturers, following Bitmain’s pre-sale of its S19 Antiminers.

MicroBT’s forthcoming M30 series of Bitcoin miners, the MS30S++ and the MS30S+, were revealed to 4,000 attendees of an online launch event on April 17. The company says that its flagship unit (the ++ model, of course) is capable of 112 TH/s at a power efficiency of 31 joules per terahash (J/TH). The M30S+ reportedly clocks in at 100TH/s with 34 J/TH of efficiency. These miners will expectedly sell for $3,900 and $2,800, respectively.

They come with a 12-month warranty, as opposed to the 180-day coverage previously offered by MicroBT.

While the company estimates the hardware will ship throughout the month of June, supply chain disruptions as a result of COVID-19 have left many in the crypto community expecting delays.

Rising competition between MicroBT and Bitmain

Bitmain revealed its post-halvlng S19 ASIC series at the end of February, with its first round of units selling out within 24 hours of going on sale.

The Antminer S19 Pro boasts a hash rate of 110 TH/s at an energy of efficiency of 29.5 J/TH, while the standard S19 generates 95 TH/s at 34.5 J/TH. These units are priced respectively at $2,633 and $1,964 each, but shipping has been delayed from May until June.

MicroBT was founded in 2017 by CEO Yang Zuoixing, a former Bitmain employee who claimed to have acted as the lead director behind the Bitmain Antminer series, including its popular S7 and S9 series’.

By 2018, the company had sold approximately 90,000 M1 and M3 units, estimated to represent 7.2% of the total BTC hashrate at the time. Over the next 12 months, the firm would sell a further 300,000 M3 units, bringing its share of hash rate up to 9%.

MicroBT launched its M20 series in May 2019, selling 600,000 units and accounting for 35% of hashing power by the end of the year.