I’ve just done a thorough deep dive into Ethereum mining and want to share some interesting things. Besides buying and selling directly on exchanges, many people are switching to mining ETH as a long-term investment. There are a few approaches—ranging from simple to complex—depending on each person’s finances and technology.

What is ETH mining? Essentially, it’s the process of using specialized equipment to solve complex problems on the Ethereum network. The first miner to solve the puzzle on each block receives a reward of 2 ETH per block, plus transaction fees. At the moment, ETH is priced at 2.28K USD and ranks #2 in the cryptocurrency market by market capitalization, so its potential is still quite large.

One interesting point is that Ethereum has now become the foundation for 94% of blockchain projects, with over 1,900 applications running on the network and nearly 3,000 decentralized dapps in operation. The number of developers exceeds 250,000—on average, 700 developers participate each month—along with more than 500,000 Ether transactions every day. These figures show that ETH is still trusted by the community for the long term.

Now let’s talk about mining methods. The simplest is to mine ETH on a phone. You download a mining app, create an account, and start participating as if it were a game. When you complete tasks, you’ll receive ETH as a reward. The advantage is that you don’t need a large investment, making it suitable for beginners who want to learn. However, the amount of coins you earn is quite small; it’s mainly for entertainment and as an initial step to understand mining.

If you want to go further, you can mine ETH on a phone with heavier apps or switch to a computer. On a computer, you need to install specialized software such as ETHMiner, Claymore Miner, or Phoenix Miner. However, you need to be careful because these programs are quite heavy—if you don’t configure them properly, it can affect your machine’s lifespan.

A more efficient option is to use a GPU (graphics card). You need a computer rig equipped with specialized GPUs, along with cooling fans, because the system will be running continuously and the temperature rises very quickly. Popular cards such as AMD, NVidia, and GTX 1070 can be considered. Minimum memory should be 4GB or higher, and both the power supply and internet must be stable.

Another option is to join a Mining Pool (mining pool). Instead of mining alone, you combine your computing power with that of many other miners, which significantly increases your chances of earning rewards. Rewards are split according to the proportion of computing power each participant contributes. Pool fees typically range from 0-2%, and large pools pay out ETH 4-6 times per day. The key point is to choose a reputable pool—temporary pools will make you waste time setting up again.

As for costs, that’s a major issue. You need to calculate storage fees (hot wallet or cold wallet), equipment maintenance fees, and space rental fees (if you have a large mining setup), and especially electricity costs. Mining rigs run 24/7, so they consume a lot of power. On average, one GPU takes 60-70 days to mine 1 ETH, and this number will increase as more miners join.

I have a few pieces of advice from my experience. Don’t push your machine’s overclock too high just to mine faster, because even if it speeds things up, it will use more electricity and the machine will wear out faster. Instead of using expensive VGA cores, you can use MSI Afterburner software to adjust the core down by 1MHz and still mine ETH effectively. Check VRM temperatures regularly with GPU-Z. Most importantly, reduce power consumption or maximize the number of coins mined relative to the amount of power used.

There is also CPU mining, but it’s not recommended because the risk of the machine overheating is too high. There are also ASIC devices—specialized hardware made specifically for mining. They are very powerful and efficient, but they’re extremely expensive to invest in, so they’re only suitable for people with substantial capital.

In summary, mining ETH on a phone is a good way to get started if you’re new to this, but if you want real profit, you need to invest in GPUs or ASICs and join a Mining Pool. No matter which method you choose, learn thoroughly, calculate costs carefully, and assess risks before deciding. Each method has its own pros and cons; choose based on your needs and capabilities.