Foundation Passport review

Open all the way down

Both the hardware designs and the firmware are published under open licences, and Foundation documents its supply chain — an unusual level of disclosure in a category where most vendors ask you to trust a sealed box. There is no data-carrying USB path, so signing happens by QR or microSD.

Usable, which matters more than enthusiasts admit

Among fully air-gapped Bitcoin devices, this is the one a non-specialist can actually operate: a colour screen, a camera and an interface that explains itself. Security features nobody uses correctly protect nobody, and Passport's main achievement is making the rigorous option approachable.

Bitcoin only

That is the design, not an omission. It integrates with the main Bitcoin desktop and mobile wallets and recovery uses standard BIP-39 with an optional passphrase, so nothing binds you to the vendor.

The price

It sits at a premium to the category. What you are paying for is open hardware, documented provenance and an interface that does not require a manual — a defensible bill if Bitcoin is the whole of your holdings.

Who it suits

Bitcoin holders who want open hardware and air-gapped signing without a technical initiation, including people setting up their first cold storage and expecting to use it for a decade.

Where it sits against Coldcard

Coldcard offers a deeper feature set for adversarial scenarios; Passport offers open hardware and an interface a person will operate correctly. After 2026, the argument for auditable openness got stronger.