[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":19},["ShallowReactive",2],{"blog-content-en-why-a-metal-crypto-card":3},{"slug":4,"title":5,"excerpt":6,"description":7,"bodyHtml":8,"faqItems":9},"why-a-metal-crypto-card","Why a Metal Crypto Card? Build, Durability and Materials","A crypto card you tap thousands of times has to survive real life. Here is why the WATS NFC Metal Card is built to IP68 and MIL-STD-810 — the steel and polycarbonate options, the chip inside, and what durability does and doesn't change.","Why a metal crypto card: the engineering behind the WATS NFC Metal Card — stainless steel vs polycarbonate, IP68 waterproofing, MIL-STD-810 durability, the NTAG 216 \u002F AES-128 chip, and what a tough build does not change.","\u003Cp>\n      A crypto card lives a hard life. It rides in wallets and pockets, gets tapped against phones\n      thousands of times, and is expected to keep working after years of that. So the materials are\n      not a vanity decision — they are a reliability decision. The WATS NFC Metal Card is engineered\n      to survive far more than a printed plastic card or a paper backup ever could, and this article\n      explains the build: the steel and polycarbonate options, the durability ratings, the chip\n      inside, and the one thing a tough body deliberately does \u003Cem>not\u003C\u002Fem> change.\n    \u003C\u002Fp>\n\n    \u003Ch2>The build: steel vs polycarbonate\u003C\u002Fh2>\n    \u003Cp>\n      The card ships in two materials that behave identically and differ only in feel. The\n      \u003Cstrong>brushed stainless-steel\u003C\u002Fstrong> version weighs around \u003Cstrong>22 g\u003C\u002Fstrong> and lands\n      in the hand like a premium object — the heft is part of the point. The\n      \u003Cstrong>polycarbonate\u003C\u002Fstrong> version comes in at around \u003Cstrong>5 g\u003C\u002Fstrong> for people who\n      would rather carry something barely-there. Both follow the standard \u003Cstrong>CR-80 card format —\n      85.6 × 53.98 × 0.84 mm\u003C\u002Fstrong> — so the card sits in a wallet slot like any bank\n      card, and both run the same chip and the same tap behaviour. The choice is about weight and\n      feel, not about how the authentication works.\n    \u003C\u002Fp>\n\n    \u003Ch2>Durability standards\u003C\u002Fh2>\n    \u003Cp>\n      Where the card earns its \"metal\" name is in what it can take. It is rated \u003Cstrong>IP68\u003C\u002Fstrong>,\n      meaning it can sit submerged at \u003Cstrong>1.5 m for 30 minutes\u003C\u002Fstrong> without water ingress — a\n      spilled drink or an accidental wash cycle is not a death sentence. It is built to\n      \u003Cstrong>MIL-STD-810\u003C\u002Fstrong> tolerances across an operating range of\n      \u003Cstrong>-40 °C to +85 °C\u003C\u002Fstrong>, so it behaves in a hot car or a freezing\n      pocket. And it carries \u003Cstrong>EMI and radiation shielding\u003C\u002Fstrong>, which matters for a\n      contactless device you want to read predictably and resist stray interference.\n    \u003C\u002Fp>\n    \u003Ctable>\n      \u003Cthead>\n        \u003Ctr>\n          \u003Cth>Property\u003C\u002Fth>\n          \u003Cth>Specification\u003C\u002Fth>\n        \u003C\u002Ftr>\n      \u003C\u002Fthead>\n      \u003Ctbody>\n        \u003Ctr>\u003Ctd>Materials\u003C\u002Ftd>\u003Ctd>Brushed stainless steel (~22 g) or polycarbonate (~5 g)\u003C\u002Ftd>\u003C\u002Ftr>\n        \u003Ctr>\u003Ctd>Format\u003C\u002Ftd>\u003Ctd>CR-80, 85.6 × 53.98 × 0.84 mm\u003C\u002Ftd>\u003C\u002Ftr>\n        \u003Ctr>\u003Ctd>Water resistance\u003C\u002Ftd>\u003Ctd>IP68 — submersible 1.5 m \u002F 30 min\u003C\u002Ftd>\u003C\u002Ftr>\n        \u003Ctr>\u003Ctd>Durability standard\u003C\u002Ftd>\u003Ctd>MIL-STD-810, -40 °C to +85 °C\u003C\u002Ftd>\u003C\u002Ftr>\n        \u003Ctr>\u003Ctd>Shielding\u003C\u002Ftd>\u003Ctd>EMI \u002F radiation shielding\u003C\u002Ftd>\u003C\u002Ftr>\n        \u003Ctr>\u003Ctd>NFC chip\u003C\u002Ftd>\u003Ctd>NTAG 216, NFC Forum Type 4\u003C\u002Ftd>\u003C\u002Ftr>\n        \u003Ctr>\u003Ctd>Standard \u002F frequency\u003C\u002Ftd>\u003Ctd>ISO\u002FIEC 14443, 13.56 MHz\u003C\u002Ftd>\u003C\u002Ftr>\n        \u003Ctr>\u003Ctd>Handshake encryption\u003C\u002Ftd>\u003Ctd>AES-128\u003C\u002Ftd>\u003C\u002Ftr>\n        \u003Ctr>\u003Ctd>Custom print\u003C\u002Ftd>\u003Ctd>Optional UV print, 600 DPI, CMYK\u003C\u002Ftd>\u003C\u002Ftr>\n      \u003C\u002Ftbody>\n    \u003C\u002Ftable>\n\n    \u003Ch2>The chip inside\u003C\u002Fh2>\n    \u003Cp>\n      Embedded in that body is an \u003Cstrong>NTAG 216\u003C\u002Fstrong> chip, an \u003Cstrong>NFC Forum Type 4\u003C\u002Fstrong>\n      tag. The contactless interface follows \u003Cstrong>ISO\u002FIEC 14443\u003C\u002Fstrong> and runs at\n      \u003Cstrong>13.56 MHz\u003C\u002Fstrong> — the same proximity-card frequency used by transit passes and\n      contactless bank cards — and the handshake between card and phone is secured with\n      \u003Cstrong>AES-128\u003C\u002Fstrong>. It is worth being precise about what this hardware is: a\n      \u003Cstrong>secured NFC tag\u003C\u002Fstrong>, where the AES-128 protects the authentication exchange rather\n      than guarding a signing key etched into silicon. We deliberately do not call it a certified\n      secure element or tamper-proof key vault, because it is neither. It is an honest, well-built\n      authentication tag.\n    \u003C\u002Fp>\n\n    \u003Ch2>What a tough build does not change\u003C\u002Fh2>\n    \u003Cp>\n      This is the part to keep straight. A premium metal shell makes the card durable; it does\n      \u003Cstrong>not\u003C\u002Fstrong> make it key storage. The WATS card is a \u003Cstrong>tap-to-authenticate\n      companion\u003C\u002Fstrong>: it authenticates access and adds a physical tap to sign, while your private\n      keys stay in the non-custodial WATS apps. Metal protects the physical object and keeps the\n      contactless read reliable; it does not turn the card into a cold wallet, and it never holds your\n      coins. The durability is there so that the \u003Cem>authentication factor\u003C\u002Fem> you rely on keeps\n      working for years — not so that you can entrust the card with your keys.\n    \u003C\u002Fp>\n    \u003Cblockquote>\n      Build quality answers \"will this still work after I drop it in a lake?\" It does not answer \"are\n      my keys on it?\" The answer to the second question is, and stays, no.\n    \u003C\u002Fblockquote>\n\n    \u003Ch2>Personalization\u003C\u002Fh2>\n    \u003Cp>\n      Because the face is a clean metal or polycarbonate canvas, the card supports an optional\n      \u003Cstrong>UV print at 600 DPI in CMYK\u003C\u002Fstrong> — a logo, artwork or a photo. It is purely\n      cosmetic and changes nothing about the chip or the security, but it makes the card\n      unmistakably yours.\n    \u003C\u002Fp>\n\n    \u003Ch2>Where to go next\u003C\u002Fh2>\n    \u003Cp>\n      For the full security model — how the chip, the non-custodial Hot Wallet and the card-loss\n      scenario fit together — read \u003Ca href=\"\u002Fblog\u002Fnfc-metal-card-security\">WATS NFC Metal Card\n      security, explained\u003C\u002Fa>. For the broader question of whether a metal build is worth paying for,\n      see \u003Ca href=\"\u002Fblog\u002Fare-metal-crypto-wallets-worth-it\">are metal crypto wallets worth it?\u003C\u002Fa>.\n      And for the product overview and how to order, visit the \u003Ca href=\"\u002Fnfc-card\">WATS NFC Metal\n      Card page\u003C\u002Fa>.\n    \u003C\u002Fp>",[10,13,16],{"q":11,"a":12},"Why is the WATS card made of metal?","Durability. A card you tap thousands of times has to survive water, temperature swings and years of handling. The steel version is rated IP68 and built to MIL-STD-810 from -40°C to +85°C, with EMI shielding so it reads reliably. A polycarbonate version is offered for those who want something lighter.",{"q":14,"a":15},"Does the metal build mean the card stores my crypto?","No. The build protects the physical object and keeps the contactless read reliable, but the card is a tap-to-authenticate companion, not key storage. Your private keys stay in the non-custodial WATS apps; metal does not turn the card into a cold wallet.",{"q":17,"a":18},"What is the difference between the steel and polycarbonate cards?","Only weight and feel. Stainless steel is about 22 g and feels premium; polycarbonate is about 5 g and barely-there. Both use the same NTAG 216 chip, the same AES-128 handshake and the same CR-80 format, so they authenticate identically.",1784634270232]