I went into a local store to get a Gatorade this weekend here in the middle of New Jersey and got a big surprise – Bitcoin ATM!

It was pretty cool to see this right next to a regular ATM. It was amazing to that this was in a regular convenience store.

I checked out the website for Pay Depot to see how many of these exist, and where they are. As of today, they have 104 of these, most of them in the NY/NJ area.

The advantage of an ATM like this is that it helps to promote Bitcoin to people that are not familiar with the technology. It is also easier and faster to use that some of the more traditional ways to get Bitcoin like Coinbase or other exchanges.

Unfortunately, I think there are also some disadvantages of this model. The most important one is that this machine charged almost 20% in fees. See the picture below to see difference between ATM exchange rate vs. Coinbase.

This hurts the concept of making payments cheaper and easier. Imagine if you got charged $20 for taking $100 out of a regular ATM! Most people would not want to use it. Another issue I had is that the store with this Bitcoin ATM did not accept Bitcoin.

I think this model could be improved by lowering the fees to something more reasonable, offering stores with the Bitcoin ATMs the ability to accept Bitcoin payments, and possibly offering other cryptocurrencies. This would make this system more flexible and easier for people not familiar with crpyto.

This is a great step to promote Bitcoin and get quick access to Bitcoin, but there is still work to do. If you just want a little Bitcoin, it is better to use faucets to build up a small portfolio. If you want to buy a lot, the fees are so high, so you are better off setting up a Coinbase account, but this process can take several days.

If you do not have either of these setup, the use of these ATMs can help you if you need quick access to Bitcoin.