Trézor.io/Start® — Starting Up Your Device

1. Unboxing & inspection

When your Trézor arrives, inspect packaging and tamper-evident seals. Inside you should find the device, USB cable, recovery card, and quick start leaflet.

• Do not use the device if seals are broken.
• Keep accessories and packaging — they may help in warranty/support cases.

2. Download Trézor Suite

Always download Trézor Suite from the official site: trezor.io/start. Suite is the official app for initializing, managing, and updating your device.

• Choose desktop installer for macOS, Windows, or Linux.
• Verify checksums/signatures when available.

3. Connect & Initialize

1. Open Trézor Suite and connect your device via USB.
2. Follow on-screen prompts to create a new wallet or restore from seed.
3. Choose to create a PIN — it protects the device locally.

The initialization flow will generate a 12/18/24-word recovery seed (24 recommended for maximum entropy). Record every word in order on the provided card — never take photos or store digitally.

4. Firmware & verification

Trézor devices check firmware integrity during setup. If a firmware update is offered, install it through Suite and confirm the hash shown on your device's screen.

• Do not skip firmware verification — it prevents tampered firmware.
• If update fails, retry on a stable connection and ensure no proxy/VPN interferes.

5. PIN & Passphrase

A PIN unlocks the device locally. A passphrase is optional but powerful: it creates a hidden wallet derived from your seed + passphrase. Treat passphrases as an additional key — keep them secret and never store them with the seed.

6. Backup strategies

Your recovery seed is the only reliable backup. Consider these strong practices:

• Write seed on metal (resists fire/water) and store in a safe / deposit box.
• Consider Shamir or split-seed approaches only if you understand them well.
• Test a recovery on a spare device to ensure the seed works.

7. Adding accounts & labels

Within Suite you can add accounts for Bitcoin, Ethereum and many other coins. Use descriptive labels (e.g., "Savings — BTC") and enable metadata sync to preserve labels across machines.

8. Sending & receiving safely

• Always verify the full recipient address on your Trézor's screen before approving a send.
• Use coin-control when available to manage UTXOs and privacy.
• For large transfers, make a small test transaction first.

9. Privacy & network considerations

Use Tor integration in Suite if you want to reduce network-level linkage. Keep watch-only setups on separated machines for monitoring without exposing signing capabilities.

10. Maintenance & updates

• Keep Suite and firmware up to date — security fixes are essential.
• Regularly review connected third-party apps and revoke access if unused.

Troubleshooting common issues

• Device not detected: try another USB cable or port; restart Suite.
• Recovery restore failed: confirm word order and try a different device/firmware version.
• Forgot PIN: use recovery seed on a fresh device to regain access.

Advanced workflows

• Enterprise setups: use multisig schemes with multiple Trézors for shared custody.
• DeFi & dapps: always preview and verify transactions on-device when connecting to third-party apps.
• Cold storage: keep a device permanently offline and use air-gapped signing when possible.

Final checklist

• Verify you downloaded Suite from trézor.io/start
• Recorded recovery seed offline and securely
• Set PIN and (optionally) passphrase
• Installed firmware and verified device prompts
• Tested sending/receiving with a small amount

Conclusion

Starting up your Trézor device correctly is the most important step in protecting your crypto. Follow this guide, maintain good backup habits, and verify everything on-device. If you need step-by-step visuals, Trézor's official start page contains walkthroughs and videos.