11h ago
🧵 PANews Original | Solana Saga Ends Operation After Just Two Years—Can Seeker Avoid the Same Fate?
1/ Once hailed as the vanguard of Web3 smartphones, the Solana #Saga officially ceased technical support just two years after launch. It went from muted interest at release to a frenzy of orders driven by a $BONK token airdrop, only to end abruptly, leaving roughly 20,000 early adopters with devices that risk being “bricked.”
This dramatic reversal has sparked fresh debate about whether crypto-phones are a viable category.
2/ The Fall of Saga: From Hype to Obsolescence
Saga’s downfall wasn’t accidental. On the business side, it sold just 20,000 units—far short of the 50,000 needed to break even—and thus failed to cover high-end hardware costs.
The collapse of its partner OSOM compounded the maintenance issues. On the user side, the hype centered on the BONK airdrop (at one point worth more than the phone itself) rather than on the product’s intrinsic value, resulting in low real usage.
With support terminated, devices now face security risks, app incompatibility, and loss of core crypto-functionality—eroding trust even further.
3/ The Pivot: Seeker Takes the Stage
In response, @solana Mobile is doubling down with its second-generation product, the #Seeker, priced at US $450. It introduces an airdrop-based incentive model and a new ecosystem token, SKR, aiming to attract over 150,000 pre-orders and re-energize the Solana mobile ecosystem.
The company hopes to reframe its narrative—from a speculative device to a functional Web3 gateway.
4/ The Road Ahead: Can Web3 Phones Redeem Themselves?
To escape Saga’s shadow, Seeker must prove it offers genuine advantages in security, UX, and dApp ecosystem integration—not merely financial gimmicks. While Saga’s end marks a failed experiment, it also serves as a crucial case study for what not to repeat. If Solana Mobile can internalize these lessons, Seeker may yet redefine what a true Web3 smartphone should be.
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