Ethereum 2.0 Genesis Block launch date is set for December 1, 2020, earlier than the previously announced date January 3, 2021.
Ethereum platform was launched in 2015 and immediately took a leading position in the blockchain market. However, over the following years, many developers have actively created their own engines to eliminate flaws. Actually, these problems are now trying to be solved with the ETH 2.0 upgrade. So if Ethereum 1.0 at the start had almost no competitors, now there are many advanced blockchains on the market.
Will Ethereum 2.0 have advantages over other platforms?
What parameters are worth comparing? Let’s take such as: transaction speed, validation mechanism, degree of system decentralization, its scaling and governance features.
Ethereum vs Cardano
Cardano is a platform developed in September 2017 by Input Output Hong Kong and Ch. Hoskinson, the former co-founder of Ethereum. The system is focused on the use of smart contracts, decentralized applications, sidechains and multiparty computing.
The main technical feature of Cardano is the division of the blockchain into two layers. The first is needed for the circulation of cryptocurrency and the distribution of coins, the second is a platform that works with smart contracts. In other projects (even Ethereum) there is no such distinction.
In addition, the Proof-of-Stake protocol ensures participation in voting for all cryptocurrency holders. It is similar to the new Ethereum Casper protocol, but according to the developers, it is the only consensus algorithm whose security can be proved using mathematics.
According to experts, due to this feature, the project can become the second platform for smart contracts after Ether 2.0
Ethereum vs Tezos
Tezos is a platform launched in 2018. The founders of the project are the family of Arthur and Caitlin Breitman. The platform can change and adapt through community consensus with minimal network disruption.
Unlike Ethereum, Tezos does not use mining, and the task of recording and confirming transactions is left to random token holders. Also, token holders conduct online voting to update software and networking rules.
Tezos offers a governance model that allows the protocol to make changes when upgrade proposals receive a positive community vote. This feature allows Tezos to avoid uncontrolled protocol updates and forks — alternative versions of the blockchain that other platforms have to contend with.
Thus, Tezos and Ethereum 2.0 will compete in security and bandwidth. Their main difference is the governance model: Ethereum does not use majority opinion and is always governed independently of the network.
Ethereum vs RSK
RSK launched at the end of 2017. RIF Labs, an organization led by the founding team of RSK Labs and other top executives, has announced that RSK Blockchain has become the most secure smart contract platform in the world and the second most secure blockchain after Bitcoin.
RSK is also used for Bitcoin mining and covers almost 48% of the total hashing power of the Bitcoin network. This makes RSK one of the main competitors to Ethereum in terms of network security through decentralization.
One of the most significant advantages of RSK is the capacity of hundreds transactions per second. This scalability is real competition for Ethereum.
The expansion of RSK in DeFi (a system of decentralized finance) and compatibility with other blockchains is perhaps the main advantage of RSK over Ethereum.
This year RSK launched an Ethereum interoperability bridge allowing anyone to send tokens between the two platforms, including RSK-based stablecoins.
However, we propose to consider this not as a rivalry, but as an impetus to the development of blockchain technologies.
Ethereum vs Qtum
Qtum is a platform launched in 2017. It is a decentralized blockchain platform for developing and running decentralized applications and Turing-complete smart contracts, supporting the Unspent Transaction Output model.
!TURING-COMPLETE SMART CONTRACTS PROVIDE OPPORTUNITIES TO SOLVE ANY COMPUTABLE PROBLEM
Similarly to Ethereum 2.0, Qtum uses the Proof-of-Stake consensus mechanism and does not require a minimum stake for staking. Ethereum 2.0 has a minimum stake of 32 Ether (ETH) and this is a major barrier to entry.
In addition, Qtum launched offline staking, allowing you to place bets on funds stored in a cold offline wallet. Not all blockchains can boast of this, and therefore this is a clear advantage over Ethereum 2.0.
Qtum also runs on the Ethereum virtual machine, which means that the project can potentially benefit from developments in Ethereum 2.0 such as sharding. However, unlike Ethereum, which is still limited to the Solidity programming language, Qtum developers can write their decentralized applications in many other widely used languages.
Ethereum vs TRON
TRON is a platform launched in 2017. It is a blockchain-based decentralized entertainment content platform using the TRX token. Platform tools allow developers to build and run their own decentralized applications.
Initially, TRON was launched on the Ethereum blockchain, and TRX were ERC-20 tokens, but after the completion of the ICO in the summer of 2018, the cryptocurrency «moved» to its own blockchain.
Tokens meeting the technical specifications of Ethereum tokens are known as ERC-20 tokens. Ethereum Request for Comments (ERC) is the official protocol for making suggestions for improving the Ethereum network. 20 — unique identification number of the offer.
TRON has a higher bandwidth than Ethereum. This allowed the platform to increase its share in the circulation of coins to 12% in just six months.
However, Tron’s scalability comes at a price. The platform is based on the consensus of delegated proof of stake. In 2019, co-founder Lucien Chen announced that he was leaving the project due to Tron’s «pseudo-decentralized» nature, which contradicts the company’s mission to «decentralize the Internet.»
Ethereum vs Elrond
Elrond launched in July 2020. It is one of the newest blockchains that rivals Ethereum due to its scalability — up to 26,000 transactions per second. This became possible due to parallel transaction processing — Adaptive State Sharding. The platform implements the Secure Proof-of-Stake consensus approach, which ensures long-term security and decentralization while eliminating the need for power-hungry PoW algorithms.
Multiple languages of smart contracts are supported by the blockchain, which allows testing and deployment in minutes.
Elrond’s approach to sharding is comparable with Ethereum 2.0. Both platforms share network nodes, transactions, and blockchain state to achieve high throughput. However, Elrond starts with a fixed number of shards that can handle 15,000 transactions per second.
According to the developers, Eldron is more promising than Ethereum. At the same time, the authors of smart contracts receive a fee of up to 30%, and the caller does not need to pay more.
Ethereum vs Algorand
Algorand launched in 2019. It is an open source blockchain focused on mass adoption. Developed by the pioneer of cryptography, Turing Prize laureate, MIT professor Silvio Micali.
The open-source pure proof protocol is the first of its kind. The consensus mechanism ensures full participation, security and speed in a truly decentralized network.
Blocks are completed in seconds, so Algorand’s transaction throughput is at the level of major payment and financial networks.
Most of all, Algorand can compete with Ethereum 2.0 in platform development. The two largest stablecoin issuers, Tether and USD Coin, operate on Algorand. Props Project, a decentralized application network, migrated from a private blockchain to Algorand.
Experts note that an important advantage is the “rekeying” in the latest platform update. Rekeying would allow users to move from a single key to a multisignature to a smart-contract- managed address with built-in spending policy. Within the DeFi space, it could simplify the work of the decentralized application (DApp) operators that take custody of user funds.
Ethereum vs Ardor
Ardor launched in 2018. It is a multi-chain blockchain platform with a unique parent-child chain architecture. The entire network is secured by the parent Ardor chain, while the compatible child chains have all the basic functionality.
This structure provides improved throughput over Ethereum’s linear blockchain. It can be compared to the Ethereum 2.0 sharding mechanism, in which the Ethereum Beacon Chain will have sharded chains operating as substructures in parallel to each other.
An important differentiator from Ethereum is that the Ardor child chain operators can issue their own tokens that are compatible with the parent chain.
Ardor’s child chain linking system allows an app developer to sponsor a transaction fee for their users and, if needed, create a hybrid app with an allowed shard.
Ethereum vs Cosmos
Cosmos launched in 2019. It is a blockchain operated by the Interchain Foundation, a non-profit organization headquartered in Zug, Switzerland.
Cosmos is an ecosystem of blockchains that can scale and interoperate with each other. Before Cosmos, blockchains were fragmented and unable to interact with each other. They were difficult to build and could process only a small number of transactions per second. According to the developers, Cosmos solves these problems.
The Cosmos architecture is made up of various independent blockchains called zones. Cosmos uses the Bonded Proof-of-Stake mechanism and the Hub-and-Zone model. Cosmos Network Hubs connect directly to zones rather than to each other, which reduces double spend and token defrosting.
Thus, Cosmos is one of the first platforms to offer blockchain interoperability. As blockchain technologies develop, more and more platforms appear, their interoperability becomes an important task. Therefore, Cosmos can compete with Ethereum 2.0 in this.
Based on materials from cointelegraph.com