03 Oct Buy Coke Instantly With Bitcoin: Vending Machine Uses Lightning Network
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One major hurdle to Bitcoin’s mass adoption as a payment system is its usability — or lack thereof — for instant micropayments. A Spanish hardware hacker has addressed these concerns with a proof-of-concept vending machine accepting Bitcoin transactions through Lightning Network.
The Holy Grail of Micropayments
Vending machines are probably the ultimate test-case for micropayments. The stock generally consists of low-value items, and customers demand instant fulfilment of purchases. Bitcoin (BTC) 00 stumbles when faced with either of these cases, so to deal with both is a double-whammy.
At the time of writing, the Bitcoin transaction fee is $0.23, making very small payment amounts uneconomical. During periods of high demand, fees can be even higher to guarantee inclusion in the next mined block. And even then, transaction confirmation can take up to ten minutes.

A New Hero in Town
Step forward, Lightning Network (LN). Often hailed as the solution to (at least some of)…
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