Category Archives: Monero (XMR)

Experiments in Crypto Mining 4: Cryptocurrency Mining with an Upgraded Home PC

Having upgraded my PC with a new graphics card, but getting disappointing results mining Bitcore with Suprnova software, next I repeated my test of mining Monero (XMR) using the MinerGate software.

This time the benchmark score was 1998 with a message “You can make an extra 100 USD per year with only this computer” – both values being roughly double what they had been before the upgrade.

MinerGate's benchmark on a GTX 1050 system (Image: BIUK)
MinerGate’s benchmark on a GTX 1050 system (Image: BIUK)

For the best outcome I set the mining to use both the CPU and the GPU (graphics card). This produced about 3 times as much hashing power as before.

Mining XMR using the MinerGate app and a GXT 1050 card (Image: BIUK)
Mining XMR using the MinerGate app and a GXT 1050 card (Image: BIUK)

However, given the poor results from last time (about 15p of Monero/XMR mined for 50p in costs) it’s clear that even at 3 times the mining power it would still not be very profitable. This is therefore another dead end.

$100 Ahead? Monero Price Holding Strong Above Key Support Level

The price of monero is showing signs its recent slide may be over.

At press time, the monero-US dollar (XMR/USD) exchange rate was up slightly, rising from a low of $84.18 to $89.40 on the day’s trading. But, a closer look at the charts indicates the bump may be a telling sign the privacy-focused cryptocurrency could soon break its slump.

Monero Logo (Image: The Monero Project/Wikimedia)
Monero Logo (Image: The Monero Project/Wikimedia)

Week-on-week, monero is down 4.3 percent, while month-on-month, the digital currency is nursing 29.3 percent loss. Launched in 2014, monero is an open-source cryptocurrency that uses innovative cryptography to obscure transactions.

In particular, today’s price is a sign bulls could be gaining an upper hand in the battle to defend the all-important 61.8% Fibonacci retracement level.

A key indicator in markets more broadly, it’s also the exact spot from which monero was able to rally from its July low to its record highs in late August. The 61.8% Fibonacci retracement level is now $80.91, while at the press time the cryptocurrency is trading at $89.40 levels; down 3.96 percent in the last 24 hours as per CoinMarketCap.

Looking ahead, price action analysis suggests that monero’s resilience could translate into bearish-to-bullish trend change.

Read more: Coindesk