It is an announcement that will certainly not run out of buzzwords for the bingo. Smartphone startup Osom has announced a total redesign for its OV1 model, a device that has been in development for some time. Called Solana Saga, it will be aimed mainly at crypto enthusiasts, with terms such as NFT, Web3 and crypto wallets heard in correspondingly sonder numbers at the presentation.
The device’s outstanding feature, however, is said to be its support for decentralized apps running on the Solana blockchain. Moreover, the NFT marketplace Magic Eden and the Solana wallet provider Phantom are supposed to have pledged their support as well.
So while you see the future in Web3 apps, you obviously don’t want to completely forget about the present. Thus, the Solana Saga is also a normal Android smartphone – and not a cheap one anyway. Once it is available, the device is supposed to cost 1,000 US dollars.
Currently, the official market launch is scheduled for the first quarter of 2023. The pre-order phase starts immediately, though. Anyone who is interested can reserve a device with a down payment of 100 US dollars.
Well-known names from the industry are behind Osom. They are primarily former developers of the failed hardware manufacturer Essential, which was launched by Android founder Andy Rubin a few years ago following his departure from Google.
It is not cheap at all
The Osom OV1 has accordingly made several appearances in the past. However, at that time it was still a “normal”, though privacy-focused Android smartphone. In addition, it was supposed to cost considerably less than 1,000 US dollars and be launched in 2022. It seems that these plans have now been mostly abandoned. In any case, Osom intends to focus entirely on the partnership with Solana, as they told “The Verge”.
The manufacturers also used the announcement to reveal new key data. A 6.67-inch 120 Hz OLED screen is supposed to be available, a Snapdragon 8 Plus Gen 1 is planned as the SoC, which is supported by 12 GB of RAM. Local storage is stated at 512 GB. Also offered is a 50-megapixel main camera as well as a 12-megapixel ultra-wide-angle.
The Web3 revolution
But these are only minor details if Solana and Osom decide to go for it. The smartphone is, after all, supposed to usher in nothing less than the age of decentralized Web3 apps. Solana CEO Anatoly Yakovenko puts it this way: 13 years after the introduction of Bitcoin, Apple still has nothing to say on the subject, so they have to get their own act together,
Of course, whether the plans will work out is another question altogether. Smartphone manufacturers have repeatedly tried their hand at crypto-smartphones in recent years, among them well-known names like HTC.
All these efforts turned out to be a commercial failure in the end. We will have to wait and see whether the Solana Saga can break out of its niche and trigger the Web3 revolution that the manufacturer is longing for.
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