Solana quietly stopped support for the Saga phone just two years after its launch

The Solana Saga mobile phone development team announced on Monday that they will stop providing important software and security updates for the device, just two years after its launch.

“Solana Mobile Saga has ended its support cycle,” the company said in a statement on its website. “We cannot guarantee that the device will be compatible with new software or services.”

The discontinuation of support means that devices will no longer receive updates, increasing the risk of encountering security vulnerabilities and potentially causing the application to stop functioning over time.

“Customer service related to individual issues of Saga will only be supported at a general level,” the announcement stated.

Launched in May 2023, Saga is designed to integrate blockchain technology, making it easier for users to access the Web3 ecosystem. This device was also created in response to the restrictive policies of app stores like Apple and Google.

The phone is made by OSOM, a hardware company based in California, in collaboration with Solana Mobile, a subsidiary of Solana Labs.

Stillborn

This information is a blow to those who purchased Solana Saga.

The two-year lifespan is quite short compared to other phone manufacturers. Apple provides at least 5 years of security updates for their devices, while Google commits to 7 years of software updates for new phone models.

The reason for Solana Mobile's early discontinuation of support has not yet been clarified. The company is currently developing a new phone model called Solana Seeker, set to launch on August 4.

Over the past decade, more than a dozen crypto phones have launched on the market, but most have not generated real appeal.

The Saga was initially sold for $1,000, but later dropped to $599 due to slow initial sales. Ultimately, about 20,000 units were sold, much lower than the target of 50,000 devices.

Airdrop memecoin

Most users will remember Saga not for its efforts to make crypto economics more accessible, but for its role in the Solana memecoin craze in late 2023 and early 2024.

When the Saga phone is delivered to customers, it comes pre-installed with a crypto wallet. Many memecoin developers on Solana have chosen to airdrop tokens into these wallets, both as a marketing campaign and to reward those who purchase the phone and support Solana.

Initially, these memecoins were worth a few hundred USD, almost equivalent to a discount for Saga, if not considered a direct compensation for users.

However, when memecoin trading peaked in early 2024, the value of airdrop tokens surged, at one point exceeding several times the retail price of the phone.

Even when the Saga is no longer supported, unopened units are being sold on online exchanges at prices three times higher than the original price.

Thạch Sanh