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77% of Bitcoin Holders Haven’t Tried It, Says Survey

by admin October 5, 2025

Bitcoin decentralized finance (DeFi), also known as BTCFi, has been touted as the next wave of innovation for the world’s largest cryptocurrency. However, research suggests bitcoin BTC$123,169.10 holders themselves are barely engaging.

Some 77% of bitcoin holders have never tried a BTCFi platform, according to a survey of more than 700 respondents across North America and Europe by BTC mining ecosystem GoMining. Just over 10% reported having experimented once or twice, while only 8% said they actively use BTCFi services for yield or lending.

The survey highlights a stark disconnect between the sector’s promise and its actual reach.

“There’s an enormous appetite for these opportunities, but the industry has built products for crypto natives, not for everyday bitcoin holders,” said GoMining CEO Mark Zalan in a statement.

That appetite shows up in the data: 73% of respondents expressed interest in earning yield on their BTC through lending or staking, while 42% want access to liquidity without selling. Yet hesitation dominates. More than 40% said they would allocate less than 20% of their holdings to BTCFi products, underscoring the sector’s trust and complexity problem.

Awareness Gap

Perhaps most striking is how invisible the industry still is. GoMining found that 65% of Bitcoin holders couldn’t name a single BTCFi project.

Despite millions in venture funding, BTCFi platforms appear to be speaking mainly to themselves rather than the market they’re built to serve.

The report argues that BTCFi’s adoption problem may stem from its reliance on Ethereum’s DeFi model. Bitcoin users, GoMining suggests, are more conservative: they favor custodial services, regulated ETFs and simplicity over self-custody experiments and complex protocols.

“Bitcoin holders aren’t ether ETH$4,534.17 users,” Zalan said. “Coinbase and Bitcoin ETFs succeeded because they prioritized accessibility. BTCFi platforms that focus on education and user experience, rather than complex features, will capture this market.”

For the industry, the survey is both a warning and an opportunity. Millions of Bitcoin holders want the yield and liquidity BTCFi promises, but they need to be met with products they can trust and understand.

However, it should be kept in mind that the survey respondents were a “random selection” of just 700 GoMining users.

GoMining is a digital BTC mining platform that connects users to real-world mining operations through Digital Miners non-fungible tokens (NFTs) and a gamified ecosystem, so the survey’s findings are subject to the extent to which its users represent typical bitcoin users.

“Our user base represents the bitcoin holders universe quite nicely,” a GoMining spokesperson told CoinDesk over email. “More than 80% of our users open their first crypto wallet with us and enter the Bitcoin ecosystem through our digital mining product.”

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October 5, 2025 0 comments

Esports

Death Stranding live-action film to “tell a story you haven’t seen in that world,” says director

by admin September 24, 2025

A24’s Death Stranding live-action film will tell “another story that you’ve never seen in this same universe,” according to its director, Michael Sarnoski.

During Kojima Productions’ Beyond the Strand 10th anniversary stream on September 23, 2025, Sarnoski joined Kojima and A24’s co-head Sam Hanson on stage to discuss his work on the film.

“Initially, when I came onto this project, it was a huge honour,” said Sarnoski, who also directed A Quiet Place: Day One. “I was terrified by the idea of taking something this big on, especially after [A] Quiet Place, which was a really big endeavour.

“But it was after meeting Kojima-san and talking to A24 that I realised how much freedom they were willing to give me on this project.”

Sarnoski also revealed that the live-action Death Stranding film adaptation will tell an original story, set in the same universe as the games.

Sarnoski said: “With this project, we really want to capture the soul of the game, capture the themes of the game, but tell a story you haven’t seen in that world, and explore characters you haven’t seen before, and find all of that scope and all of those incredible real locations, but also find all of those nuanced characters and just do justice to this on a macro and micro scale.”

“We’re trying to find something, another story that you’ve never seen in this same universe that is both accessible to people that have never played the games before, but will also give something to people that know the games really well,” he continued.

“And so, I think finding that balance and finding a way to tell a really human story in this world that captures everything we love about it as well as being able to stand on its own two feet is really the goal.”

Adding to this, Kojima explained that, due to Death Stranding taking “about 70, 80 hours” to complete, they didn’t want to “slim that down to a two-hour movie.”

“So, using that world, but a totally different story of Death Stranding the movie is essential and important,” Kojima said. “That’s why I wanted someone who could write and direct, and I’m not going to get involved too much because if I do, I’m going to start saying a lot of things. I’ll be like a producer, and I could trust Michael fully.”

In addition to the update on the live-action Death Stranding film, Kojima shared a first look at the animated Death Stranding movie, which now has the working title of Death Stranding: Mosquito.

While we already knew screenwriter Aaron Guzikowski was attached to write the film, during the event, Kojima announced that ABC Animation Studio’s Hiroshi Miyamoto is the animation director.

According to Miyamoto, the current working title is a hint at the film’s main character and their ability, as they have the ability to “suck something” that’s not blood.

During the 10th anniversary event, Kojima Productions also announced that it is working on an AR project with Niantic Spatial, revealed a new teaser trailer for OD (which now has the subtitle ‘Knock’), and revealed poster art and cast members for its upcoming stealth game Physint.

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September 24, 2025 0 comments

Esports

College football Week 4 preview: Auburn-Oklahoma, quarterbacks who haven’t lived up to the hype yet and more

by admin September 18, 2025

Sep 18, 2025, 08:00 AM ET

If there’s an overriding storyline through three weeks, it has been about the winners and losers of some big bets on quarterbacks.

Miami bet on Carson Beck reviving his NFL prospects after a down year at Georgia. So far, he has delivered, averaging nearly 10 yards per pass with eight total touchdowns, and the Canes are ranked in the top five.

Oklahoma wagered Brent Venables’ future on John Mateer, and the Washington State transfer has been electric, leading the Sooners past Michigan in a Week 2 showdown and earning Heisman front-runner status.

Auburn felt sure former five-star recruit Jackson Arnold still had plenty of untapped potential, and through three weeks, he has looked like the superstar he once was, getting the Tigers to 3-0.

Ohio State, Georgia and Oregon all bet on in-house QBs rather than dipping into the transfer portal, and all have been rewarded.

Florida State, Indiana and Tulane hit pay dirt in the portal.

That’s the good news.

On the flip side, so many quarterbacks who were expected to provide massive dividends — Arch Manning, Cade Klubnik, DJ Lagway, Nico Iamaleava, LaNorris Sellers — have wavered between average or awful.

Week 4 offers some chances for redemption, with Lagway getting another big test against Miami, Klubnik hoping to right the ship against Syracuse and UNC’s Gio Lopez going on the road against UCF in the Tar Heels’ first real test since a blowout loss to TCU.

Some of the nation’s most talented young players have a chance to break through, too. CJ Carr can earn win No. 1 against woeful Purdue. Michigan’s Bryce Underwood, coming off a strong performance against Central Michigan, has a much bigger test against Nebraska. Ole Miss’ Austin Simmons hopes to return from injury in time to make his mark in a showdown with Tulane.

The story is just beginning to be written, so there’s plenty of time for Manning, Klubnik and other preseason darlings to find their footing. But it has been a cold September for some of the nation’s most renowned passers, and Week 4 could be another opportunity for others to grab their share of the spotlight. — David Hale

Jump to:
Auburn-Oklahoma | Utah-Texas Tech
Quarterbacks who are falling short
Breakout players | Quotes of the week

What do each of these teams need to do to win?

Stew Milne/Getty Images

Auburn: The Tigers have to disrupt Oklahoma quarterback John Mateer and make him pay for running the ball, and they have the ingredients to do so. Auburn is tied for sixth nationally in sacks per game (3.67) and tied for 12th in tackles for loss per game (8.7). Although Keldric Faulk is the headliner, Arkansas State transfer Keyron Crawford has been the team’s most disruptive pass rusher so far with three sacks and a forced fumble. The defense and run game, which ranks 16th nationally at 240 yards per game, ideally must reduce the pressure on quarterback Jackson Arnold in his highly anticipated return to Oklahoma. Arnold is completing nearly 70% of his passes, running the ball effectively and limiting mistakes, but the more Auburn’s other playmakers can take off his plate, the better the chances for a key road win. — Adam Rittenberg

Oklahoma: Arnold started nine games for the Sooners last fall. If anyone knows his weak spots, it’s Oklahoma coach Brent Venables. As Adam points out, Arnold (eight turnovers in 2024) has played efficient, mistake-free football in his first three games at Auburn. A Sooners defense that’s creating pressures on 44.6% of its snaps this season — 10th nationally, per ESPN Research — is built to change that and make Arnold uncomfortable, although Oklahoma will be without 2024 sack leader R Mason Thomas for the first half Saturday following a Week 3 targeting ejection. Mateer will have his own work cut out for him against the Tigers’ defensive front, but he should be able to find holes in a secondary that ranks 85th in yards allowed per game (220.0). The difference, ultimately, could come on the ground where a still-figuring-out Oklahoma rushing attack meets Auburn’s 10th-ranked run defense (67.0 yards per game) on Saturday. Freshman Tory Blaylock (5.4 yards per carry) has been the Sooners’ most effective running back through three games. — Eli Lederman

How do each of these quarterbacks need to perform?

Utah: Through three games a year ago, Utah had gone without a first down on nearly a quarter of its drives. This season, it has happened only three times in three games. The difference is Devon Dampier, who has looked as at ease running his brand of dual-threat football in a Power 4 backfield as he did a year ago at New Mexico. Dampier has racked up more than 800 yards of offense and accounted for eight touchdowns, and he has yet to turn the ball over. His skill set has made him particularly effective. He has already accumulated 80 yards on scramble plays, and three of his seven TD passes have come from outside the pocket. This will be his biggest test to date, but he’ll also be, by far, the biggest challenge for Texas Tech’s defense. — Hale

Editor’s Picks

2 Related

Texas Tech: Behren Morton hasn’t taken a snap after the third quarter across three straight 30-plus point victories to open the season. Still, Texas Tech’s senior quarterback enters Week 4 tied for No. 1 nationally in passing touchdowns (11) and ranks ninth in passing yards (923), leading the nation’s highest-scoring offense (58.0 PPG). Utah, with the nation’s 20th-ranked pass defense (134.0 yards per game), should present Morton with his toughest test yet in 2025. He’ll have to be accurate against an experienced Utes secondary, and Morton’s decision-making will be key, too, in the face of a Utah front seven that features the nation’s joint sack leader in John Henry Daley — five in three games — and blitzes on 42.6% of its snaps, the 10th-highest rate among FBS defenses, per ESPN Research. Most of all, Texas Tech will hope Morton’s experience (27 career starts) can keep its offense steady in the Red Raiders’ first visit to a notoriously hostile Rice-Eccles Stadium. — Eli Lederman

Three quarterbacks who aren’t meeting their preseason hype

With the most preseason hype out of any college football player this season, Texas QB Arch Manning is completing only 55% of his passes through three weeks. David Buono/Icon Sportswire

1. Arch Manning

Anyone can have a rough outing in a Week 1 matchup against the defending champs, and Manning looked fine a week later against San José State. So, nothing to worry about, right? Ah, not so fast. A dismal first half against UTEP ignited a full-on inferno of criticism of the preseason Heisman favorite, and for good reason. Manning is completing just 55% of his throws and has turned the ball over three times, and Texas has gone without a first down on nearly a quarter of its drives so far. Add the sideline grimace that coach Steve Sarkisian chalked up to — well, we’re not quite sure — and it would be enough reason for concern even if Manning didn’t carry a legendary name and a ton of hype. That this all comes on the heels of such high expectations means Manning will be fighting critics for the foreseeable future.

2. Cade Klubnik

What’s wrong with Clemson’s offense? The answers are everywhere, but none appear bigger than Klubnik, who has at times looked lost, frustrated or intimidated in the pocket. His 37.5 QBR through three games ranks 121st out of 136 FBS passers, and his miserable first-half performances — no passing touchdowns, two turnovers — have put Clemson in some early holes. Klubnik is completing less than 60% of his throws on the year, but the bigger issue is the number of open receivers he hasn’t even targeted in key moments. He has been sacked just three times this year, but he has gotten moved off his position too often, and abandoned ship even more frequently. So, what’s wrong with the Tigers? The better question is what’s wrong with the Tigers’ QB?

3. DJ Lagway

After last year’s hot finish, the assumption was that Lagway would take the next step in 2025 to becoming one of the best quarterbacks in the country. Through three weeks, he’s nowhere close. Not only is Florida off to a 1-2 start, Lagway has been the primary culprit. He’s completing 71% of his throws, but nearly one-third of his throws are behind the line of scrimmage. He has done nothing to extend the field, attempting just seven throws of 20 yards or more. On those throws, he has one completion and two picks. Lagway’s six interceptions overall are tied for the second most nationally through three games. If Florida wants to turn things around amid a brutal schedule, it has to start with Lagway looking more like the player he appeared to be down the stretch in 2024. — Hale

Five early breakout players

Rueben Bain Jr., DL, Miami: The 6-foot-3, 275-pound pass rusher is performing at an All-America level so far this season with 15 stops, 11 pressures, 2.5 TFLs, 1.5 sacks, an interception and a forced fumble through three games. Bain was a top-100 recruit and a Freshman All-American in 2023, so there’s nothing shocking about his rise, but he’s making the leap as a junior and proving he’s a no-doubt NFL draft first-round pick. As ESPN draft expert Jordan Reid put it, no other draft-eligible player in the sport is having a greater down-to-down impact than Bain.

Taylen Green, QB, Arkansas: Green is off to an incredible start to his second season under OC Bobby Petrino, leading the country in total offense with 866 passing yards, 307 rushing yards (most among all FBS QBs) and 13 total touchdowns. Last week against Ole Miss, he became the first QB in program history to surpass 300 passing yards and 100 rushing yards in a single game. The Razorbacks came up short in their SEC opener but have seven more top-25 opponents on the schedule, which should give Green every opportunity to play his way into Heisman contention.

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Mario Craver, WR, Texas A&M: The Aggies faced Craver last year during his freshman season at Mississippi State and knew he could be a dangerous playmaker. He has been an absolute game changer for Marcel Reed and Texas A&M’s passing game with an FBS-leading 443 receiving yards and four TDs on just 20 receptions. The 5-foot-9, 165-pound wideout isn’t flying under the national radar anymore after burning Notre Dame’s secondary for a career-best 207 yards on seven catches, and his 279 yards after catch are nearly 100 more than any other pass catcher in the country.

Ahmad Hardy, RB, Missouri: Hardy had a prolific freshman season at UL Monroe and hasn’t slowed down one bit since making his move to the SEC. He’s now the second-leading rusher in the FBS with 462 yards and five TDs after a ridiculous 250-yard day against Louisiana last week. The sophomore has played in only 15 career games, yet he already has three 200-yard performances on his résumé, and he leads all FBS backs with 29 forced missed tackles, according to ESPN Research.

Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele, QB, Cal: The true freshman from Hawaii was a late riser in the recruiting rankings as a high school senior, and we’re quickly learning why he became so coveted. Sagapolutele signed with Oregon but flipped back to Cal in early January, believing he’d have a chance to start right away for the Golden Bears. The 6-foot-3, 225-pound lefty has flashed big-time arm talent and exciting potential with 780 passing yards and seven total TDs while leading a 3-0 start. He’s becoming must-see TV on a Cal squad that looks poised to exceed expectations. — Max Olson

Quotes of the Week

Georgia Tech is off to a hot start at 3-0 after a win over Clemson in Week 3. Brett Davis-Imagn Images

Clemson coach Dabo Swinney on speculation about his job security:
“Hey, listen, if Clemson’s tired of winning, they can send me on my way. But I’m gonna go somewhere else and coach. I ain’t going to the beach. Hell, I’m 55. I’ve got a long way to go. Y’all are gonna have to deal with me for a while.”

Texas coach Steve Sarkisian on quarterback Arch Manning:
“Here’s a guy who’s had an awesome life, the way he’s grown up, the people he’s been surrounded by. I think you learn a lot about yourself through adversity and overcoming adversity. … When he gets on the other side of it, I think all of this is going to serve well not only for him, but for us as a team.”

LSU coach Brian Kelly:
“LSU won the football game, won the game. I don’t know what you want from me. What do you want? You want us to win 70-0 against Florida to keep you happy?”

Michigan fill-in coach Biff Poggi on Bryce Underwood:
“He might actually be Batman. We need to do a DNA test on him.”

Georgia Tech coach Brent Key addressing his team after beating Clemson:
“Enjoy the s— out of it, man. Guess what? Next week is going to be bigger.”

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September 18, 2025 0 comments

Gaming Gear

Haven’t replaced your laptop in a few years? Here’s how to know if it’s college-ready or time for an upgrade

by admin September 4, 2025

Everyone eyes up shiny next-gen laptops in ads and store windows sometimes and thinks about how nice it would be to have a new device – but do you really need one?

As a champion of reducing e-waste, I’d typically say no, your existing laptop is probably fine. Unless you’re using a clunker from 2016, there’s often no need to upgrade your laptop until it starts to get real sluggish at basic things like web browsing.

That said, there are some pivotal moments when upgrading your laptop is worth considering – and one of those is when you head off to college or university. After all, higher education now practically demands that you have your own computer, and who’s taking a full-size desktop with them to college?

1. Raw power: what can it do?

Let’s start by considering processing power – but before I even get into that, I have an important caveat to make, which might even save you from needing to read the rest of this article (you’re welcome).

Here it is: if your laptop is more than five years old, it’s definitely time to upgrade. Sure, five years isn’t that old, and a well-looked-after laptop could still be running fine after that much time. But remember, by the time your studies are complete it’ll be eight, nine, or even 10 years old, depending on how many years your course lasts. Software changes too much in that amount of time for you to still expect reasonable performance, even if the laptop itself is still in good condition.

Anyway, let’s talk performance. How much processing power does the best student laptop need? Well, that answer depends on what you’re going to be using it for.

Some college-level courses, such as literature or business studies, will only require you to do simple tasks on your laptop – like writing assignments or online research. If that’s the case, you don’t need a ton of computational oomph.

For courses like this, you’ll probably get away without upgrading your existing laptop if it’s only a few years old already. As a general rule of thumb for the CPU, I’d recommend an Intel Core i3 (or Ultra 3), AMD Ryzen 3, or Qualcomm Snapdragon X Plus as the minimum for a Windows laptop, along with at least 8GB of RAM – though 16GB is preferable.

If you prefer the best MacBooks instead, I’d say upgrading is mandatory if yours is an older Intel model; anything from the M2 chip onwards is ideal.

Getting a high-end gaming laptop for college is often overkill, but some majors will be able to take advantage of the greater processing power. (Image credit: Nvidia)

Some majors, however, will see you doing more intensive tasks on your laptop. The list is long: photo and video editing, 2D and 3D art, game design, animation, music production… lots of creative disciplines will usually require the use of more demanding software, such as Adobe’s Creative Cloud or Blender.

The same goes for many technical courses; most STEM majors will find themselves using tools like MATLAB, which will run better on more powerful hardware.

For this, it becomes more of a question of budget, since the sky is arguably the limit. If cash is no concern, something like a high-end MacBook Pro with an M3 or M4 chip is a good choice. If you prefer Windows, look for laptops with an Intel Core i7 (or Ultra 7), AMD Ryzen 7, or Snapdragon X Elite processor, with at least 16GB of RAM. You may even want a laptop with a dedicated GPU (ideally from Nvidia).

In other words, if you’re studying a subject that will require a more powerful laptop, it’s more likely that you’ll need to upgrade.

You might be lucky if you’re a PC gamer, though. If you already own a gaming laptop with a discrete GPU, preferably an Nvidia RTX 3000-series or newer, then you should be fine to use that as your primary system for college – just consider whether you’ll need to take it to classes regularly, since gaming laptops are rarely renowned for their portability and battery life.

2. Battery life: how long can it last?

On that topic, next up is battery life. Our own research into consumer needs here at TechRadar has indicated that battery quality is one of the single most important factors people think about when it comes to deciding on a laptop, and I’m inclined to agree; any laptop that can’t make it through a full eight-hour day of work or studying isn’t worth its salt (unless it’s very cheap).

With that in mind, there are ways to test out your own laptop’s battery life to figure out whether it’s up to scratch for college.

You can actually do one of our in-house battery tests yourself for free: just download VLC Media Player and the Blender short film Big Buck Bunny, then set brightness to 50% (volume off) and set the video to loop. Start with a full charge and simply time how long it takes the battery to run out.

I have watched this video far too many times.

Bear in mind that we use this test for consistency’s sake, and it isn’t necessarily indicative of how long a laptop will last in every real-world scenario. If you’re running intensive software (like playing games, for example), you can expect your remaining charge to drain faster.

You should already have a feel for whether the battery life on your laptop is good enough, though; if you struggle to use it for a few hours without hunting for a power outlet, it might be time for a new laptop.

If you decide to upgrade, check out reviews and rankings – like our very own best laptops list – to read up on the battery life and charging speed of any laptop you’re considering.

3: Portability: how light is it?

Most students want to take their laptops on the go frequently, so portability is another major concern here.

When I went to university more than a decade ago, I took my chunky two-year-old HP Pavilion 16, which was a big darned mistake. Granted, laptops in general weren’t as svelte back then, but I still wish I’d had something a bit more portable; lugging that thing to classes was a pain in the, uh, shoulders.

There are plenty of modern laptops that pass the portability test, though. Look for laptops with a display size of 15 inches or less, with a total weight of less than 2kg.

If you want something ultra-portable, you might even want to consider one of the best student Chromebooks, which are not just smaller and lighter but also cheaper than many MacBooks and Windows laptops – just remember that Chromebooks are only well-suited for basic tasks like word processing and internet research.

Chromebooks can be a viable (and affordable) option for college, but be certain you’ll only need to do basic tasks on your laptop of choice before buying one. (Image credit: Shutterstock)

4. Display: how sharp is it?

The last thing I’ll briefly talk about here is screen quality.

If you’re studying any visual media course such as photography or graphic design, you’ll want to make sure your laptop has a good display. That means a minimum resolution of 1080p (but higher is better) and decent color reproduction; look for a ‘color gamut’ of at least 100% sRGB or 95% DCI-P3, ideally Pantone-validated.

And that’s it! Hopefully, you now have the information you need to make an informed purchase – or not, if you already have a laptop that’s only a couple of years old.

Ultimately, only you can decide whether you really need to upgrade, but here’s my advice: if you think your laptop is pretty decent and nothing in this article has set off alarm bells in your head, stick with it. We could all stand to make our tech last a little longer.

You might also like…

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September 4, 2025 0 comments

NFT Gaming

Billionaire Tim Draper on $250K Bitcoin Prediction: ‘I Haven’t Been Right Yet’

by admin August 25, 2025

Uber-bullish price target
Bitcoin and Microsoft

Prominent Silicon Valley investor Tim Draper has addressed his failed $250,000 Bitcoin price predictions during his Monday interview on CNBC.

“So, I’ve been predicting $250,000 for Bitcoin for a long time. It turns out I haven’t been right yet,” Draper said, bursting out in laughter.

Nevertheless, Draper claims that the fact that Bitcoin is already halfway there is “very exciting.”

He insists that Bitcoin is a “hedge” against bad governance, arguing that now is actually “a really good time” for the bellwether token.

Uber-bullish price target

Draper, who made his massive fortune with early bets on such names as Skype and Hotmail, was also among the first prominent investors to embrace Bitcoin. In 2014, he bought tens of thousands of Bitcoins that were auctioned off by the US Marshals Service after being confiscated from darkweb marketplace Silk Road.

In 2014, Draper predicted that Bitcoin would hit $10,000 within three years with extreme accuracy.

However, his next bullish target was a huge miss. Draper first stated that Bitcoin would be able to reach $250,000 within four years back in April 2018. He would then repeatedly reiterate that prediction throughout the years.

Bitcoin and Microsoft

As reported by U.Today, Bitcoin recently started losing ground to altcoins, including Ethereum (ETH).

Draper claims that competition is good for Bitcoin, adding that its market dominance is actually higher compared to previous cycles.

He has reiterated that Bitcoin is comparable to tech behemoth Microsoft in the sense that various novel applications are being ported to the leading network.

Draper has stated that there is a “gravitational” pull toward the largest cryptocurrency.

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August 25, 2025 0 comments