On the other hand there's no reason why the customer couldn't load the value after arrival and just pay you for a blank coin (has address+key), removing that whole process from your workload.
There is a reason, and it's that I don't want zero-value intact physical bitcoins in the wild. Otherwise nobody can trust on sight that when they receive one, that it actually contains a bitcoin.
Loading them after arrival confirmed by customer also means you can be sure the value isn't lost if the coin is lost/stolen. Which means you could use lower cost shipping like air mail.
A stolen or lost-in-transit unloaded coin would still be a "zero-value intact physical bitcoin in the wild". If coins were illegitimately obtained, we must still be able to trust their value (just like real stolen bitcoins
). Looks like he's doing it right in not letting them get out without being loaded. If you wanted to, you could send more money to the coin though!
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I have my own set of questions...
- what does a peeled coin and it's prize look like,
- how does a tampered coin look after best efforts to replace hologram (remove with hair-dryer, replace perfectly),
- what does the private key look like, is it on the back of the hologram, or a little piece of paper? base58 or ?
- does a coin survive a trip through the washing machine and dryer?
- how are the keys/address printed, does a printing company also get these numbers, are they printed out on another sheet you use to load the coins, and when is that destroyed, etc. A clarification of how many eyes have seen the key.
- are you making sure the address is a unique firstbits before loading?
- what 3d features to look for in original hologram (vs Chinese counterfeit - and don't think they won't fake anything of value. Counterfeiting these coins would just be buying them, redeeming them, and putting them back in the wild with a counterfeit hologram. If they will fill gold bars with tungsten, they will fill coins with BTC good only for the PayPal dispute period) Such questions might be better answered on the ordering website for that "secure" feeling.
Although you're probably not looking for design by committee, I have a few ideas for v2.
- The next round of holograms could have "casascius.com" instead, so a recipient knows to go there and see info about the coins.
- The hologram field (where the misspelling is) could be less 'brand-heavy', such as the words "tamper protected secure"
- The word "original" (especially if peeling alters this) could be "genuine" "authentic".
- Your website could have a "lookup your coin" feature to see the full address and balance, or a form that submits the coin to firstbits to get the full address.
- We assume the coin mainly circulates un-redeemed due to the higher cost than face value, but if someone wants to import and use the digital currency, some instructions for importing might be useful.I can also see a clever programmer coming up with a website/gateway where you can input a private key, another bitcoin address, and amount to send, and the website can send the bitcoin to that address.
I will, however, sell the Bitcoin coin blanks without the hologram and without any value for 0.15 BTC. I would also offer quantity discounts since I don't have to assemble them.
I would suggest striking out the value or other stamping on the front with a die on sample coins for the above counterfeit concern.
Edit: Previous post shows this is a peeled coin:
they're so cool! 
)