Cardano’s “Babbage” Now Available on Ledger Live

Ledger, crypto hardware wallet manufacturer, has announced the availability of the new Cardano v5.0.0 app on its platform.

In a tweet, Ledger Support announced that the long-anticipated Cardano Babbage v5.0.0 app can now be accessed on Ledger Live. The new update allows users to create smart contracts using the Vasil upgraded Plutus script. 

“Cardano app v5.0.0 “Babbage” is now available to download in Ledger Live. This experimental app can be installed alongside the regular v4 app to make Plutus smart contract transactions. “

While announcing its new feat, Ledger has also hinted at more similar developments in the future. Responding to a query on the launch of XZT NFTs on Ledger, the firm’s support page announced it is looking into adding NFT support for more blockchains in the future. Ledger further stated that although there is no estimated time of arrival for this at the moment, more information will be shared with the community soon. 

Cardano’s “Babbage” v5.0.0

Named after the mathematician credited as “the father of the computer”, Charles Babbage, Cardano’s Babbage is meant to smooth out any wrinkles leftover from its previous release Alonzo. Cardano is one of the most active smart contracting platforms. It is also under development with new features being introduced as the blockchain evolves.

Earlier in October, the latest version of the Daedalus wallet rolled out with an improved Ledger JavaScript offering support for the Babbage app. With this,  users of the Cardano full-node desktop-only app will also be able to access the Cardano Babbage v5.0.0 to create smart contracts using the latest Plutus scripts from the Vasil upgrade. 

As expected, Ledger’s latest announcement was gladly received by the crypto community on Twitter. There has been a flurry of positive responses and queries to Ledger Support’s latest tweet. A user noted that he had been using the app for weeks on his Ledger Nano X asserting that it worked perfectly.

At the same time, CTO at Input Output Global (IOG), the development company behind the Cardano network, took the opportunity to swipe at statements from FTX’s Sam Bankman-Fried describing Cardano as a new blockchain.

Ledger’s Procedure For Accessing “Babbage”

In addition to unveiling the Babbage v5.0.0, Cardano has also put out the procedure for accessing the app. According to Ledger, before downloading the app, users must first ensure that they are running the latest version of the Ledger Live app and running the latest firmware on their Ledger wallet. 

Users must connect and unlock their Ledger device and navigate to “Experimental Features” under the Ledger Live interface settings to enable the “Developer Mode”. Having done this, they will have to check on “My Ledger” to allow access when requested by pressing the instructed buttons, then search for and install the Cardano Babbage app in the My Ledger app catalogue.

As a disclaimer, Ledger Support notes that, unlike the Cardano v4 app, Ledger Live does not currently support the Babbage App. Consequently, users can only use it with third-party apps. Ledger suggests apps like Nami, Ty.phon, and Eternl.