Bitaxe Gamma vs Avalon Nano 3S: Which Home Bitcoin Miner Is Right for You?

2. Specs at a Glance (Comparison Table)

2.1. Core Specs Comparison

Feature	Bitaxe Gamma	Avalon Nano 3S
Algorithm	SHA-256 (Bitcoin)	SHA-256 (Bitcoin)
ASIC Chip	Single modern SHA-256 chip (BM1370 class)	Canaan ASIC (Avalon Nano series)
Typical Hashrate	~1.1–1.2 TH/s	~6 TH/s
Power Draw	~18 W	~140 W
Efficiency (approx.)	~15 J/TH	~23 J/TH
Form Factor	Open board, small fan, OLED display	Enclosed mini appliance / mini heater
Connectivity	2.4 GHz WiFi, USB-C for debug	WiFi and/or Ethernet (model dependent)
Target User	Tinkerers, solo/lottery hobbyists	Home users wanting heat + hashrate

• Raw hashrate winner: Avalon Nano 3S (≈ 5–6x more TH/s).
• Efficiency & power winner: Bitaxe Gamma (lower watts, better J/TH).

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3. Use Cases and User Profiles

3.1. Bitaxe Gamma: Open-Source Solo / Lottery Miner

Best for:

• People interested in solo / lottery mining through solo pools.
• Users who enjoy tinkering with hardware and firmware.
• Home miners who want something that:
  • Uses very little power,
  • Runs quietly on a shelf,
  • Helps them actually understand how Bitcoin mining works.

Ideal scenarios:

• You want an always-on lottery miner as a hobby.
• You like flashing firmware, watching stats, and adjusting settings.
• You want a tiny efficiency monster that does not destroy your electricity budget.

You do not buy a Bitaxe Gamma expecting to pay your bills. You buy it because you want to learn, experiment and have a modern open-source miner in your home.

3.2. Avalon Nano 3S: Quiet Heater + Plug-and-Play Hashrate

Best for:

• Users who want a finished consumer device from a major brand.
• People who like the idea of a small heater that mines Bitcoin at the same time.
• Beginners who want:
  • A compact, enclosed unit,
  • Higher hashrate than micro miners,
  • A mostly plug-and-play experience.

Ideal scenarios:

• You want to warm up a small room while hashing.
• You prefer a neat, enclosed product over an open PCB.
• You are okay paying for ~140 W 24/7 because you value both the heat and the hashrate.

You do not buy an Avalon Nano 3S only for ROI; you buy it because you want a “btc heater” and you like branded hardware.

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4. Performance and Efficiency

4.1. Hashrate: Who Wins on Paper?

• Bitaxe Gamma:
  ~1.1–1.2 TH/s
• Avalon Nano 3S:
  ~6 TH/s

If you care purely about hashes per second in a compact device, Avalon Nano 3S clearly wins. It delivers several times more hashrate than a single Bitaxe Gamma.

4.2. Power and Efficiency: Who Uses Less Per TH/s?

• Bitaxe Gamma:
  • Around 18 W at stock settings.
  • Very strong efficiency for a single-chip device.
• Avalon Nano 3S:
  • Around 140 W at its standard operating mode.
  • Less efficient per TH/s than Bitaxe Gamma, but still “reasonable” for a quiet home miner.

From an efficiency standpoint (watts per TH/s), Bitaxe Gamma is superior. It is designed to be extremely power-efficient, giving you:

• A tiny footprint on your electricity bill,
• Very low heat and noise for the hashrate it delivers.

Avalon Nano 3S, on the other hand, assumes you also want the heat, so it leans more toward “quiet mini heater that also mines”.

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5. Noise, Heat and Physical Presence

5.1. Bitaxe Gamma

• Low power draw → low heat output.
• Single small fan → very low noise, more like a quiet desktop fan.
• Open board design → looks like a dev board, not a finished product.
• Needs to be placed somewhere:
  • Dust-free,
  • Away from kids and pets,
  • With enough airflow.

For most home setups, Bitaxe Gamma is easy to live with: it hums quietly in the background, barely warming the air.

5.2. Avalon Nano 3S

• Higher power draw (≈140 W) → significant, intentional heat output.
• Noise level designed to be “quiet home appliance”:
  • Louder than Bitaxe Gamma,
  • Much quieter than industrial miners.
• Enclosed casing → looks and feels like a small heater or premium gadget.
• You should place it:
  • In a room you actually want to heat,
  • With a bit of space around it for airflow.

In day-to-day life:

• Bitaxe Gamma disappears into the background.
• Avalon Nano 3S is a device you notice more, both as a source of warmth and a small fan sound.

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6. Setup and User Experience

6.1. Bitaxe Gamma Setup Flow

Typical Bitaxe Gamma setup:

1. Connect a suitable 5 V power supply (with enough amps, not a random weak phone charger).
2. Power on; connect to the device’s web interface via 2.4 GHz WiFi.
3. Configure:
   • Your home WiFi (SSID + password),
   • Your solo pool or regular pool endpoint,
   • Your Bitcoin address as the worker name.
4. Save, reboot and monitor:
   • From the OLED screen on the board,
   • From the web dashboard in your browser.

Because the firmware is open-source, you can:

• Update to the latest builds,
• Adjust frequency/voltage for different power modes,
• Experiment with solo vs pool mining.

If you like having control and seeing “under the hood”, Bitaxe Gamma is very satisfying.

6.2. Avalon Nano 3S Setup Flow

Typical Avalon Nano 3S setup:

1. Plug in the included power supply.
2. Connect to the unit via WiFi or Ethernet, depending on your model and firmware.
3. Configure:
   • Mining pool address,
   • Worker name (often your Bitcoin address),
   • Optional parameters (performance mode, fan settings, etc.).
4. Place the device in the room you want to heat, and let it run.

The Avalon Nano 3S feels more like:

• A branded home appliance,
• With a user interface designed for non-technical buyers,
• Less about open-source tinkering, more about “plug it in, set it once, and walk away”.

Both devices become “set-and-forget” once configured; the key difference is how much control you want.

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7. Lottery Mining vs Pool Mining

7.1. Lottery / Solo Mining

For lottery mining, what matters is:

• How many hashes you contribute relative to the entire network,
• How much you are willing to pay in electricity for a chance that may never pay off.

Both Bitaxe Gamma and Avalon Nano 3S can be pointed at solo pools.

• Bitaxe Gamma:
  • Very low power usage → cheap to run 24/7 as a lottery miner.
  • Around 1.1–1.2 TH/s → non-zero odds, but still extremely long shots.
  • Great as a pure “lottery ticket + learning tool”.
• Avalon Nano 3S:
  • Around 6 TH/s → roughly 5x more hashrate than a single Bitaxe Gamma.
  • Much higher power usage → you are paying more for those extra odds.
  • Works well as a “heater that also plays the lottery”.

If your main priority is:

“I want a very efficient, low-cost lottery miner I can forget in the corner.”

then Bitaxe Gamma is the natural choice.

If you want:

“A compact heater that also gives me a lottery chance and decent hashrate.”

then Avalon Nano 3S is the better fit.

7.2. Pool Mining

With pool mining, more hashrate simply means:

• More frequent small payouts,
• Smoother income curve (although still small at these scales).
• Bitaxe Gamma:
  • Pool payouts will come slowly due to low TH/s.
  • Great for understanding pool dashboards and payout mechanisms.
• Avalon Nano 3S:
  • Higher TH/s means more noticeable pool payouts.
  • Better choice if you specifically want to see small regular rewards and you are okay with the electricity cost.

Neither device is a “serious profit engine”, but for pool mining, the Avalon Nano 3S has an edge in user satisfaction because things “happen” more often.

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8. Cost and Value (Conceptual, Not Exact Prices)

Prices for both miners change with:

• Market demand,
• Bitcoin price cycles,
• Local availability and shipping.

Instead of chasing exact numbers, it is more useful to compare value profiles.

8.1. Bitaxe Gamma Value Profile

You get:

• A very efficient single-chip ASIC board,
• Open-source firmware and community,
• Super low power usage.

It makes the most sense if:

• You want to learn and experiment,
• You like open-source hardware,
• You view the device as a long-term gadget rather than a money printer.

8.2. Avalon Nano 3S Value Profile

You get:

• A compact, enclosed mini heater miner,
• Branded hardware and a more “finished” feel,
• A noticeable amount of hashrate in a small form factor.

It makes the most sense if:

• You actually want the heat in your living space,
• You value aesthetics and simplicity,
• You are comfortable with higher power consumption in exchange for a nicer user experience.

In both cases, the smartest mindset is:

• You are paying for hardware, learning and enjoyment,
• Not for guaranteed ROI.

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9. Pros and Cons Table

To make the decision even clearer, here is a direct pros/cons comparison:

Miner	Pros	Cons
Bitaxe Gamma	Very low power (≈18 W)	Much lower hashrate (~1.1–1.2 TH/s)
	Excellent efficiency per TH/s	Open board design, not a finished “appliance”
	Open-source firmware, highly tweakable	Requires basic WiFi and PSU knowledge
	Great for solo/lottery mining hobby and learning	Pool payouts will be small and infrequent
	Quiet and easy to hide on a shelf	Mainly a hobby/education device, not a serious income source
Avalon Nano 3S	Much higher hashrate (~6 TH/s)	Higher power draw (~140 W)
	Enclosed, appliance-like design (mini heater + miner)	Less efficient per TH/s than Bitaxe Gamma
	Quiet compared to full-size ASICs	More expensive to run 24/7 on expensive electricity
	Great as a room heater in cold climates	Less tinker-friendly, more closed ecosystem
	More noticeable pool payouts thanks to higher TH/s	Still not a true “profit machine” at home scale

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10. Which One Should You Buy? Decision Guide

Choose Bitaxe Gamma if:

• You want an always-on lottery miner with minimal energy cost.
• You like open-source hardware and firmware, and you enjoy tweaking settings.
• You prefer maximum efficiency over raw hashrate.
• You want a device that primarily serves as:
  • A learning tool,
  • A fun gadget,
  • A small contribution to decentralization.

Choose Avalon Nano 3S if:

• You want a mini heater that mines Bitcoin as a side effect.
• You prefer more hashrate and a familiar consumer-device feel.
• You are okay paying for 140 W of power in exchange for warmth and more visible pool payouts.
• You value:
  • A neat, enclosed design,
  • Minimal firmware/DIY work,
  • A simple “plug, configure once, and forget” experience.

If you have the budget and are deeply into the hobby, the honest answer might even be:

• Both – Bitaxe Gamma as your ultra-efficient solo/lottery toy,
• and Avalon Nano 3S as your quiet winter heater that also hashes.