- Solana remains grounded despite its Saga blockchain phone selling out
- The value of the BONK airdrop given to buyers is why the phone has received so much attention this month
- The company is assessing the true demand for the phone before making decisions on the next steps
Solana is not getting carried away with the astronomical sales of its Saga blockchain phone after it was revealed that an airdrop handed out to buyers was worth more than the device itself. The phone itself has been largely a disappointment in terms of sales, but the 1,000% rise in the value of the BONK memecoin has turned the situation on its head, thanks to the BONK airdrop handed out to all Saga buyers. The airdrop is now, temporarily, worth more than the phone itself, leading to supplies running out in many regions worldwide, leaving Solana in a production quandary.
Solana Was About to Retire Saga
Solana released its Saga web3 phone in May, but just two weeks ago the project was said to be “under internal discussion” following poor sales. The phone, initially priced at $1,000, was discounted to $599 after just three months, and Solana founder Anatoly Yakovenko told the Unchained podcast in early December that the company was looking again at whether the Saga was a viable product:
We have to decide if there’s a place for a smart wallet, a much cheaper version that an iPhone user could use as a secondary device. We haven’t seen a ton of signal whether that’s a compelling enough thing to sell 50,000 units.
How times have changed. Just 10 days after Yakovenko’s comments, Solana took to X to inform the world that, against all odds, the Saga phone had sold out:
The Saga is SOLD OUT!
Words cannot describe how much we appreciate your support. We are nothing without this amazing community 🫂
While these past few days will be cemented in our history, we’re excited for the future 🫡
Stay tuned ✨ pic.twitter.com/KJje8lBDLL
— Solana Mobile 🌱 (@solanamobile) December 16, 2023
However, it’s pretty clear, even to the most committed Solana fan, that the buyers aren’t in it for the phone; the BONK memecoin, 30 million of which are handed out as an airdrop to every Saga buyer, has shot up 1,000% in value, making a Saga phone temporarily worth $900.
As a result, canny investors have been buying up Saga phones hoping to sell their BONK for a profit, and then presumably sell or ditch the phone itself. This has led to sellers on eBay asking up to $5,000 per phone, clearly playing on the hope that the BONK moonshot will continue.
Solana Assessing True Demand
As for whether Solana will replenish its stocks, this depends on several factors, as a spokesperson told Decrypt:
We’re extremely excited by this surge in momentum and interest in Saga. Right now, our priority is to continue listening to our community so that we can understand what this demand looks like, both now and in the future, and assess what comes next.
Not a Saga 2, that’s almost certain.
Of course, no one knows what makes memecoins fly, but the fact that Solana was wondering what on Earth to do with the thousands of discounted units it had in its warehouse and suddenly two weeks later it is sold out of the most in-demand phone on the planet is, some might argue, a little suspicious.
Either way, Solana has managed to find itself a get-out-of-jail-free card just at the right time.
