Ellipal X Card held next to its retail box. The card is for daily use. The Starter is for setup and recovery only.

Ellipal X Card Unboxing and Setup Tutorial

This is the first-time setup for the Ellipal X Card, the same path as in the video. The wallet is created on a small offline device called the Starter. After that, daily use is just the card and your phone.

The Starter does not send or receive crypto. It is only for creating the wallet, making a spare card, or recovering a lost card later. After setup you can put it away.

Review: Ellipal X Card review. Buy: ellipal.com. Ellipal X Card discount code NORDIC saves 10% at checkout.

Do this at home, on a table, with no one looking at the recovery words.

Ellipal X Card held next to its retail box. The card is for daily use. The Starter in the box is for setup and recovery only.
Ellipal X Card and the box it comes in. The thin card is what you tap on your phone. The Starter in the box is only for setup and recovery.

What you need

  • The sealed Ellipal X Card box
  • The Starter, charged enough to stay on
  • The X Card
  • A phone with NFC
  • The official ELLIPAL app from the App Store or Google Play
  • A pen
  • The seed phrase sheet from the box

About ten quiet minutes is enough.

1. Open the box

Look at the wrap first. If it looks cut and taped back up, stop and talk to the seller.

Ellipal X Card retail package before opening.
The Ellipal X Card package before you open it.
Ellipal X Card box opened showing the card and Starter.
The box opened. You should see the card, the Starter, and the papers.

Inside the box you should find:

  • The X Card
  • A sleeve for the card
  • A get started paper
  • A seed phrase sheet
  • The Ellipal Starter
  • A charging cable for the Starter

The sleeve is there so the card is not sitting bare in a bag or wallet between uses.

Everything in the Ellipal X Card box: card, sleeve, papers, Starter, and charging cable.
Everything in the kit: X Card, sleeve, papers, Starter, and charging cable.
The Ellipal Starter device. Creates the wallet offline with no internet connection.
The Ellipal Starter. This small device creates the wallet offline. It has no internet connection.

The X Card looks like a normal payment card. It has no screen and no battery. After setup you tap it on the back of your phone.

2. Turn on the Starter and start a new wallet

Hold the power button on the Starter until it turns on. On the first menu you can create a new wallet or recover an old one. For a first setup, choose Create Wallet.

Ellipal Starter showing Create Wallet and Recover Wallet options.
Create Wallet or Recover Wallet on the Starter. Create Wallet is the first-time path.

Recover Wallet is only if you already have recovery words from before and you want those on a new card.

3. Insert the X Card

The Starter will ask you to put the X Card in. Slide it in and leave it there until the Starter says you can take it out.

X Card inserted in the Ellipal Starter during wallet setup.
X Card inserted in the Starter. Leave it in until setup on this device is finished.

4. Choose how many recovery words

The Starter asks for 12, 18, or 24 words. Those words are the backup for the wallet. If the card is lost, the words are how you put the same wallet on a new card.

24 words is the longer backup. 12 words is shorter to write. Either works. Pick one and confirm.

Ellipal Starter asking for seed phrase length: 12, 18, or 24 words.
12, 18, or 24 recovery words. This is the backup length for the new wallet.

5. Set the card PIN

Next you set a PIN for the card. You will type this PIN in the app when you connect the card and when you approve a send.

Use the arrows on the Starter to set the digits, then confirm the same PIN again.

Setting the card PIN on the Ellipal Starter.
Setting the card PIN on the Starter. Remember this PIN. Ellipal cannot reset it for you.

Wait until the Starter shows that the wallet is created. The key is now stored on the card.

6. Duplicate card, if you have a second blank card

The Starter asks if you want a duplicate card. That copies the same wallet onto another X Card.

If you only have the one card from the box, choose No.

If you bought a second blank X Card and want a spare, choose Yes, take the first card out when it says so, put the blank card in, and follow the screen.

Duplicate card question on the Ellipal Starter after wallet creation.
Duplicate card question. No is fine if this is the only card you have. Yes copies the same wallet onto a second card.

7. Write the recovery words

The Starter now shows the recovery words. Write every word on the sheet from the box, in the same order as the screen.

Ellipal Starter showing recovery words to write on the paper sheet.
Write the words on the paper sheet from the box. This is the backup for the wallet.

Then the Starter asks you to confirm the words so it knows you wrote them down. Follow the prompts on the small screen.

Confirming the recovery words on the Ellipal Starter.
Confirm the words on the Starter. After this, take the card out when the screen says to.

When it tells you to remove the card, take the X Card out of the Starter. You can turn the Starter off and put it away. You only need it again if you lose the card or forget the PIN and have to recover.

8. Open the ELLIPAL app

Download the official ELLIPAL app from the App Store or Google Play. Open it and look for Cold Wallet, then X Card, then Connect X Card.

ELLIPAL app showing Cold Wallet and X Card connection options.
The ELLIPAL app. Cold Wallet, then X Card, then Connect X Card.

Type the card PIN you set on the Starter.

9. Tap the card on your phone

Hold the X Card near the NFC area on the back of the phone. On many phones that is the upper half of the back. Keep it there until the app says it is connected.

Tapping the Ellipal X Card on the back of a phone to connect via NFC.
Tapping the X Card on the phone so the app can find it.

When it works, you will see the wallet in the app.

Ellipal X Card wallet connected and visible inside the ELLIPAL app.
Setup finished. The X Card wallet is now visible in the ELLIPAL app.

From here the app shows balances and starts a send. The card is what approves it when you tap again.

After setup

You do not need the Starter in your bag. Keep the card, the PIN, and the paper words in different places if you can.

Send a small test amount in first. Then send a small amount out and tap the card to approve it.

The X Card has no screen of its own. Read the address in the app with care before you tap.

Quick checklist

  • The box looked sealed
  • I created a new wallet on the Starter, not on a website
  • The X Card stayed in the Starter until it said to remove it
  • I set a PIN I will remember
  • I wrote the recovery words on paper and confirmed them on the Starter
  • The official ELLIPAL app is connected
  • I tapped the card and the wallet showed up in the app
  • I have not photographed the recovery words

Review: Ellipal X Card review | Card comparison: Tangem vs Ellipal X Card

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