Solana’s new phone promises a lot for a little—and it’s already seeing great demand.

which started last year Solana Saga smartphone It was a big bet by Solana Labs that didn't seem to pay off at first. But the end of a year Increase in demand Thanks in part to that time-discount phone around The value of adding simulated air drops Attached to it, he cleared the rest of the stock and It prompted questions about what's next..

Enter “Chapter 2”. It was revealed in JanuaryThe Airdrop craze that fueled Saga's fortunes comes weeks after the next Solana phone attracted 140,000 pre-orders and is due to launch in mid-2025 as the Solana Finder.

Solana Mobile, the Labs division behind the hardware, unveiled the official branding and first glimpse of its next Android handset at Token 2049 in Singapore on Friday.

And it's different. The previously announced $450 pre-order cost—less than half of Saga—may have foreshadowed that, but Solana Mobile general manager Emmett Hollier said. Decrypt Let's not weigh down the finder with its much lower price point.

“We've priced it because we want it to be accessible for development, not because we're looking to release it in any way.

Full hardware specs haven't been released yet, but Hollier Solana says the Finder will have a brighter “flagship display” than the Saga and a longer-lasting battery, along with “better cameras” and a new third sensor packed on the back. .

And in terms of performance, he suggested it would be a “meaningful step up from Saga.” The saga is partly due to the fact that many users believe they plan to use their primary phone as a secondary rather than a replacement.

That's a paradigm shift and messaging pillar, which Hollier says is based in part on Saga's feedback and emerging use cases, such as software for running nodes and decentralized physical infrastructure (mining tokens).It depends). The name of the search engine, he explained, is motivated by the idea of ​​users to “find new opportunities” for rewards, experiences or connections.

“People are constantly looking for those things, and so it came to us very quickly,” he said.

He admits that messaging around the saga can be confusing in terms of crypto focus. But with 140,000 people already looting the depositor, we're sure there's a growing group of users — and we're sure this phone will focus on new and established crypto users rather than the general population.

I don't expect it to be a device that we offer to the masses like Hollier says, “Hey, use an Android phone and maybe try some Crypto features.” “I'd love to be there, but I think we need to learn from our users before we can really get this right and start attracting the masses.”

Solana Phone 2.0

Amidst all the changes, however, some elements of Finder are similar to Saga. The crypto integration is again led by Seed Vault, a custom security solution built into a secure environment on the phone. This time it's visually called out in the phone's design, as seen in product shots, with a reflective piece wrapped around the right side of the frame.

In addition to the Seed Vault itself, Solana Mobile is also designing a custom software wallet for the searcher in collaboration with Soulflare, which Hollier describes as a “better user experience” compared to wallets currently available on Saga.

They have also seen more interest from Solana developers and builders to launch mobile decentralized applications (dapps) alongside the search engine. Only 20,000 units of the saga have been produced, but with Seeker pre-orders already hitting a 7x multiple, developers have more incentive to devote time and resources to mobile, he said.

“We are full of integrity in the ecosystem,” he said.

Finally, just like Saga, every seeker phone will be sent by Genesis NFT– A symbol with a soul that is forever tied to its owner's wallet. Saga pioneered this model and quickly proved to be a “reward magnet” for owners, as Hollier put it, thanks. Bonk At the end of last year, Mem Coin airdrops in price and projects that reward other owners as well.

All of these incentives are community-driven, and Solana Builders has seen a wave of interest in finding the right audience. Undoubtedly, there will be rewards, and he expects projects to offer exclusive access and experience to the owners.

“It's definitely going to be an awards magnet, but it's also going to open the door to a one-of-a-kind experience that I think will be new to Saga for seekers,” Hollier said.

Edited by Guillermo Jimenez