In payments the 99% case where everyone acts in good faith and no one makes a mistake is the easy part. It's when eg the seller refuses to send the phone that the extra overhead of the traditional payment system comes into play.
Ironically, blockchain technology is the first technology that actually solves the age old problem of how to establish trust within a truestless system.
imho Bitcoin is a novel implementation of open-source technology, cryptography, and decentralized networks. I realize hackernews community has a disdain for greed and the avarice that is commonly connoted with "cryptocurrency" aka crypto-assets, but the reality is that bitcoin and crypto-assets are here to stay, and I for one am glad they are open-source.
The GP complains about the overhead and data collection of traditional solutions, implying it’s a bunch of unnecessary cruft. In fact it’s to comply with local laws and protect the consumer and merchant from fraud. GP used Bitcoin to get around this hassle, renouncing any rights in the event of a dispute.
Now, maybe that’s a win, but it’s a much more nuanced and less generalized win than is put forth by crypto proponents.
Notice also the goalpost move of declaring Bitcoin a win over mailing cash. Ok, have you ever done that in your life? I have not been involved in mailed cash transactions aside from receiving $5 from my grandma in the mail 20 years ago.
Isn't that exactly why this mailing cash/cheques fell out of favor compared to bank transfers, credit cards, PayPal, all these centralised systems that bitcoin posits are a problem