'It is more difficult to mine Bitcoin now than 10 years ago. It will not be easier to mine once its price goes down. In fact, it will be more difficult and more expensive to mine . . . '
I've been called out!
Anyone wanna take a side on this debate before reading what's below?
'As mining difficulty rose so did the need for better, more dedicated hardware.'
https://thenextweb.com/news/a-brief-history-of-bitcoin-mining-hardware
'The most likely reason for new miners joining the highly competitive space is because of bitcoin’s extreme price potential.'
'On May 22, 2010, computer programmer Laszlo Hanyecz paid
10,000 BTC for two Papa John’s pizzas. The pizzas were worth around $25. According to cryptocurrency data provider Coin Metrics, bitcoin market price then appreciated in July to around 8 cents. By the time the bitcoin price reached 10 cents in October 2010, the first mining device leveraging graphics processing units (GPUs) was developed.'
https://www.coindesk.com/tech/2020/04/26/the-rise-of-asics-a-step-by-step-history-of-bitcoin-mining/
Readers, my background in this technical stuff is shite. But anyone who's been crypto-geekin' 7 days a week since May, 2013 knows what 'hash' is.
So, when Bitcoin was 8 cents
per, GPUs and ASICs didn't exist. GPUs and ASICs were invented as hash rates -- mining difficulty -- rose.
That is, hash rate = mining difficulty = $$
And it has been explained to muggins that if Bitcoin's price crashed back again to, say, 8 cents, the mining difficulty would likewise crash, and you wouldn't need GPUs and ASICs to successfully mine. You'd be able to mine again on laptops.
So: 'It is more difficult to mine Bitcoin now than 10 years ago.' -- correct.
And: 'It will not be easier to mine once its price goes down.' -- incorrect.
sic probo