The new Solana phone Seeker is unveiled. Can it break even this time with airdrops?
Chapter 2 The pre-orderers barely break even, but the Seeker product design has shifted towards meeting airdrop demands.Author: Golem, Odaily Planet Daily
On September 19, Solana Mobile, a subsidiary of Solana Labs, officially announced the new web3 smartphone Seeker, which is the second-generation web3 smartphone developed by the company following the first-generation web3 phone Saga. Earlier this year, Seeker began pre-sales under the codename "Chapter 2," and according to official announcements, pre-sales have exceeded 140,000 units.
The main reason Chapter 2 was able to complete a large number of pre-sale orders without revealing specific device information is that the airdrop value from Solana chain projects for the first-generation web3 phone Saga far exceeded the purchase cost. Therefore, people have similar expectations for the second-generation phone.
It is reported that the early bird price of Seeker at $450 will end on September 21. With the specific details of the Seeker phone being announced, what highlights in device functionality make it worth buying compared to the first-generation phone Saga? From the perspective of airdrops, can purchasing now expect to recoup costs through airdrops?
This article briefly introduces the specific details of the Seeker phone and summarizes the airdrop values received by previous Solana phone pre-orderers, hoping to provide reference for readers' purchasing decisions.
Main Features of Seeker Phone
Hardware: Better Camera, Smaller Storage
According to public information, the Saga phone is equipped with a flagship Qualcomm Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 processor and a 4110 mAh battery; it has 512 GB of storage space and 12 GB of RAM; a 6.67-inch AMOLED screen; and two cameras, with resolutions of 50 million pixels and 12 million pixels, respectively; it also features fingerprint unlock.
Based on the currently announced hardware of the Seeker phone, the changes are:
Smaller storage space, with Seeker having 128 GB of storage and 8 GB of RAM, which is far less than the first-generation phone Saga;
Smaller screen size, with Seeker equipped with a 6.36-inch AMOLED screen, making it lighter and more compact compared to the first-generation phone;
Improved camera pixels, with Seeker also equipped with two cameras, with resolutions of 108 million pixels and 32 million pixels, making its camera performance stronger than the first-generation phone.
Additionally, according to official descriptions, the battery performance of Seeker will also be better than that of the first-generation Saga, but no specific data regarding the Seeker battery has been announced yet.
Seed Vault Wallet: Upgraded User Experience
The Seed Vault Wallet is a mobile-first crypto wallet designed specifically for Solana Seeker. Its natively integrated hardware Seed Vault enables seamless self-custody, supporting fingerprint unlock and double-click transaction sending, allowing users to enjoy a smoother and upgraded user experience.
Solana dApp Store 2.0: Added Rewards Tracker Feature
The Solana dApp Store has added a rewards tracker feature to clearly track and display all user rewards, and has updated navigation to enhance dApp exploration capabilities, covering areas such as payments, DeFi, DePIN, NFTs, and games. In the future, exclusive dApp products for Seeker will also be launched.
Additional Seeker Genesis Token
Each Solana Seeker comes with a soul-bound Seeker Genesis Token, which serves as a VIP pass for users to unlock rewards, access, and content within the Solana ecosystem. Additionally, those who pre-order Seeker can still receive Chapter 2 pre-order tokens.
AI Integration
Seeker users can use Alethea AI to generate tokenized AI agents (new faces or familiar faces), which can interact with the Solana community on-chain or in-app, unlocking new ways to participate and earn.
Airship: Making Airdrops Cheaper
Helius has launched the ZK compression tool Airship, which can reduce airdrop costs by 4,000 times. Previously, airdropping to the Solana Mobile pre-order community cost $40,000, but now it only costs $100, and it can be automatically airdropped to Chapter 2 pre-order token holders.
Airdrop Value Received by Solana Phone Pre-orderers
Regarding the airdrop appreciation for the first-generation Web3 smartphone Saga, if sold at the right time, it can not only cover the purchase cost but also yield profits. Therefore, driven by the desire to gain airdrops, the pre-order volume for Solana Chapter 2 far exceeds that of the first-generation phone Saga. The following summarizes the major airdrop projects and their values for the first-generation phone Saga and Chapter 2:
As shown in the image, for users of the first-generation phone Saga, the airdrop value is indeed quite substantial. Even early users who spent $1,000 on the phone (the price of Saga dropped to $599 in August 2023) can easily cover their purchase costs with the airdrop value, and if sold at the right time, there could even be significant profit potential.
For Chapter 2 pre-orderers, the difficulty of covering purchase costs or making a profit is higher than for the first generation. Chapter 2 pre-orderers can receive higher-value airdrops from the MEW and MANEKI projects, while the airdrop values from other projects are relatively small. To recoup costs or make a profit, one would almost need to sell at the peak every time.
Is Seeker Worth Buying?
In summary, from the perspective of airdrops, even though the purchase cost of Chapter 2 has decreased, the difficulty of recouping costs and making profits has increased. One possible reason for this is increased competition; the first-generation phone Saga sold only about 20,000 units, while Chapter 2 has already reached 140,000 pre-orders, meaning more people are sharing the pie, and naturally, each person's share becomes smaller.
Solana continues to develop hardware products, perhaps aiming to become the Apple of the crypto space, establishing its own hardware and software ecosystem. However, considering the features of Seeker, the key points that users may want to focus on are the rewards tracker, the Seeker Genesis Token, the new earning models with AI agents, and the airdrop tool Airship. This may also reflect a positive signal that Solana is catering to users' potential demand for airdrops and aims to expand the pie again, attracting more attention to Solana's hardware products.
