Solana Saga Smartphone Dubbed 'Worst of the Year' Despite Sell-Out Success

According to CryptoPotato, the Solana Saga smartphone has been declared the worst smartphone of the year by popular YouTuber Marques Brownlee (MKBHD). Despite this, the phone has experienced a surge in demand, leading to a sell-out and an increase in the price of a memecoin developed on the Solana smart contract platform. In a comprehensive overview of the leading phones of 2023, Brownlee, a prominent YouTube personality with 18 million subscribers, labeled the Solana Saga phone as the 'failure of 2023.' Although he acknowledged its commendable build quality and design, Brownlee strongly cautioned against purchasing the device, deeming it a 'terrible idea.' The Solana Saga smartphone distinguishes itself through its integration of blockchain technology, specifically tailored to enhance the experience for cryptocurrency users and developers. The device represents an innovative fusion of advanced mobile technology with Solana's blockchain capabilities, introducing heightened functionality and connectivity for the crypto community. Solana Mobile recently announced that its Saga smartphone had sold out, a noteworthy accomplishment since it started shipping the Web3-enabled phones in April. One potential factor contributing to the sales surge is the incentive of receiving free BONK for purchasing the Saga, as indicated on the project's website. The decentralized finance (DeFi) crypto wallet Phantom specifies that the reward amounts to 30 million BONK, valued at over $620 at the time of this writing. The Saga phone also offers additional benefits and rewards, including a free month of access to Helium Mobile, a complimentary toy, and special rewards from apps on Saga's decentralized application (dApp) Store. Initially, the Solana Saga phone faced slow sales, reducing its price to $599 in August. However, the situation took a turn as traders recognized an arbitrage opportunity. A Solana phone, bundled with unclaimed BONK, recently fetched $5,000 in a resale on eBay. Other Solana Sagas are currently listed on the e-commerce platform at prices ranging from $2,000 to $10,000. Anatoly Yakovenko, co-founder of Solana Labs, expressed earlier that the smartphone aims to bring more people into cryptocurrency. He highlighted the Saga as the first device where crypto is treated as a primary element in mobile, emphasizing the improvement it gets to the user experience of Web 3. Yakovenko noted that without Saga, the user experience of Web 3 is challenging, particularly in terms of self-custody and security for mobile wallets, which can impede innovation and slow down user experiences in these domains.