What is the importance of blockchain for the creation of NFTs and the blockchain platforms you can use to create NFTs?
NFTs are the current hot cake and everyone wants a piece of it (bet you do too). We all have an understanding that NFTs are digital art or rather ‘digital assets’ (it includes anything and everything that comes under the definition of digital. It can be an image, a video, a gif, an audio clip, a game, your voice turned into your voice assistant, etc.) that are bought and sold by a million people at certain prices all over the world (yep, that’s right, people can buy your voice if you upload it as an NFT).
The use of NFTs were limited to artists and art collectors, late off, they’re also used by celebrities to increase their fan following, by corporates and companies for marketing and advertisements, and in metaverses where NFT art galleries exhibit and sell digital art.
NFTs are gaining a stronghold in the crypto space, this is surprising as NFTs were considered to be one of the side projects that used blockchain. NFTs have gained fame for a lot of reasons, one primary reason is that anyone can use them to exhibit and sell art. NFTs provide complete privacy to all the parties involved on the NFT platform. Blockchain takes away the credit for making it decentralized and private to all parties.
Blockchain was primarily introduced in the year 2008 as a proposal for Bitcoin as ‘a virtual currency system’, blockchain was said to solve a lot of problems. The blockchain technology has immense unexplored potential, while we are still on the verge of understanding the implementation of blockchain in various aspects of the trade, it has created massive dominance in the crypto space. The primary feature of blockchain is that it is a decentralized form of flow between various parties cutting out all intermediaries.
Why is minting your NFTs to a blockchain essential?
As you already know, NFTs are unique by nature. They have certain properties that make them stand out. There can be two NFTs similar in appearance (yep, you know I’m taking about the ape NFT. Its everywhere), but they have properties and identifiers that make them distinctive. This is where blockchain comes into the picture.
Blockchain has a system of transparency and proof of work that lets anyone view the work and everything related to it. Minting an NFT to a blockchain shows proof of ownership. The only downside is that you need to pay a fee to mint your NFT, either before or after selling them depending on the platform. You will have to get yourself verified as the owner or the seller/buyer. At times, the completion of minting is contingent even on payment of this transaction fee.
Anyone who wants to verify the work can trace the timestamp of the NFT, the party who created it, the owner(s) of it, and the unique identifiers that make it distinctive (Yep, I know you’re thinking of the different colors and accessories of the NFT ape). These are public ledgers open to everyone and cannot be tampered with.
There are plenty of blockchain platforms that you can use to create your NFT (although, most of them choose Ethereum), but you need to understand all pros and cons before picking the blockchain platform (even for Ethereum). Once you mint your NFT to a blockchain, you can’t sell it on another blockchain platform. Here are some blockchain platforms you can use to mint your NFTs. You need to understand which suits you better.
Ethereum.
Ethereum is known to be the most prominent and renowned blockchain in the crypto space. Ethereum is at the top of the blockchain platform as it provides stability and reliability to its users. It is widely used as it contributes to 95% of the whole blockchain flow. Its blockchain uses a consensus mechanism for the validation of its transactions.
The reasons why it is a widely dependent blockchain platform is that it has a large network, it is convenient to use, and it uses smart contracts that cut out intermediaries. The Ethereum blockchain is a safe space for its users. Ethereum has Dapps specifically for its NFT space.
Pros.
1. Ethereum has a vast chain of networks.
2. The deployment speed is fast comparatively.
3. Data coordination of Ethereum is the best as compared to any other blockchain.
Cons.
1. The gas and minting fee in Ethereum is very high compared to other blockchain systems.
2. Minting of the NFT is contingent even after paying gas. The gas fee is non-refundable.
Cardano.
Cardano is an individual independent blockchain system that comes in rank after Ethereum as a blockchain platform. Cardano is an eco-friendly, and sustainable blockchain that is built keeping in mind regulatory compliance and better scalability. It has incentive-based participation for the flow of blockchain.
Ouroboros is the foundation for Cardano, which is a highly secure proof-of-stake mechanism. Cardano uses the right mix of high-end technology and mathematically-verified mechanisms to make sure the blockchains are secure and sustainable.
Cardano is equipped with the Ethereum Virtual Machine that supports Ethereum based smart contracts and Dapps
Pros
1. It is the most sustainable and environmentally friendly blockchain platform. It has a smaller carbon footprint.
2. It is built keeping in mind the importance of scalability and regulatory compliance.
3. It is equipped with secure protocols. The mathematical verification against attackers is a prime security feature.
4. It costs comparatively lower.
Cons
1. Cardano uses a proof of stake mechanism, this could put the crypto network in a vulnerable position as it selects the miner for the next block based on the highest computing power.
2. Cardano might cost lower, but it also means it has lower storage space. Smart contracts require more storage space than payments.
Solana.
Solana is claimed to be the fastest blockchain platform with a proof of stake mechanism. Solana aims to be the go-to blockchain platform for crypto apps. Solana is a popularly used blockchain platform because of its ability to scale. It guarantees to be fast while it charges the lowest gas that doesn’t exceed 0.01$ for any transaction.
Solana is known to complete a transaction with around 400 milliseconds as a time block. It is an independent blockchain with decentralized layers known to provide the most feasible services. Solana has an unimaginable big market considering the fact that it has extended partnerships with various companies for future NFT and decentralized finance. Solana implements tokenized KYC systems as a way to verify the ability and worthiness of its users to gain trust.
Pros
1. It has been claimed to be the fastest blockchain mechanism.
2. It has a vast chain of networks because it provides feasible services.
3. It has very minimal gas fees that are close to free.
Cons
1. It is believed that Solana is not decentralized enough.
2. Solana has a very unstable network considering the investor community.
3. People still prefer Ethereum over Solana despite its transaction speed and low charges.
Binance smart chain.
The Binance smart chain is powered by the Binance chain that delivers a smooth, fast, and secure performance. The Binance chain targets improving efficiency and stability. It is one of the fastest blockchains with a block time of 3 seconds.
Binance smart chain uses the Ethereum virtual machine that supports smart contracts and Dapps. The Binance smart contracts have excellent decentralized features that have proven advantageous for several integrated platforms. Binance chain uses a hybrid of the proof of stake and proof of authority mechanism called the proof of staked authority for verification and authorization of transactions.
Pros
1. The Binance smart chain was built keeping in mind the NFT space. Hence, it makes the Binance chain the most compactable for NFTs.
2. Binance chain charges minimal gas fees and other transaction charges making it the most economical for the service’s premium provided.
3. Its compatibility with EVM supports Dapps and smart contracts.
4. Shifting between tokens is made. It also supports cross chains communication and transactions.
Cons
1. The Binance smart chain is vastly centralized by nature. Centralized systems are vulnerable to attacks from outsiders.
2. Binance smart chain loses an edge over Ethereum when it comes to innovation as Binance smart chain recruits developers who also play an active role in the Ethereum.
Flow
Flow is a four-node blockchain that was developed by Dapper labs to create a game-based NFT called the Cryptokitties. It is done so because the NFT is congested on the Ethereum blockchain. This is a blockchain that was created specifically for NFTs.
Flow uses a proof of stake authorization mechanism that supports NFTs and other consumer applications. The four-node decentralized layers addressed various issues and make it scalable, fast, and ensures low cost.
The four nodes are
1. Collector nodes improve efficiency, network connectivity, and ensure the availability of data for Dapps.
2. Execution nodes improve speed, scalability, and computation associated with each transaction.
3. Verifier nodes keep in check execution nodes and ensure accuracy and correctness.
4. Consensus Nodes are responsible for the decision-making of the order of the transactions.
Pros
1. Four node architecture. This mechanism ensures the fastest yet most efficient performance of the NFT blockchain.
2. Flow uses a language called Cadence to write its smart contracts. It offers ease to developers and security to users.
3. Flow uses the proof of stake mechanism that is a better option for NFTs.
4. Flow has upgradeable smart contracts.
Cons
- It has a good scalability, but there are other platforms that are faster.
- Even thought it was specifically developed for the NFT space, users still prefer using Ethereum. Flow has undertaken projects that use Defi and NFT to create metaverse games.
Conclusion.
Choosing a blockchain is an important aspect of NFT creation. Once you select the blockchain it becomes relatively easy to select the NFT listing platform. Selection of the platform is a personal choice, you can select the platform after weighing the pros and cons of each of the blockchains.
Ethereum is a widely used blockchain platform as it has a huge chain of networks. However, it may be noted that there are other blockchain platforms that provide better scalability, security and decentralization.
