Solana Labs unveils Saga: Web3 cryptocurrencies going mobile

Solana Labs unveiled its new Android smartphone, Saga, developed on Solana Mobile Stack, to bring cryptocurrencies and Web3 to mobile. 

Not only that, Coinbase said it has added Ethereum (ETH), Polygon (Matic) and USD Coin (USDC) on Polygon network and the USD Coin (USDC) stablecoin operating on Solana. 

Solana Mobile Stack for creating Web3 apps for Android and Saga 

Solana Labs unveiled Solana Mobile Stack, its new platform for creating Web3 apps for Android, which will initially be used through Solana Mobile’s new flagship device called Saga.

Saga will be officially released by the first quarter of 2023, while it is currently already pre-orderable. 

In a roundup of tweets, Solana Labs describes the main features of the new platform and its first Saga Android device. 

2/
Solana
Mobile
Stack

It’s the toolkit you need to build beautiful, seamless web3 mobile experiences, coming first on Saga, a flagship device from @Solanamobile.

Pre-order at https://t.co/pmJe7MUzQl pic.twitter.com/hSYPBaVM2i

— Solana (@solana) June 23, 2022

In essence, Solana Mobile Stack is a toolkit for building seamless Web3 mobile experiences, coming first to Saga, Solana Mobile’s flagship device. 

Not only that, Solana Mobile Stack is also an open-source encryption layer built on Android that includes:

• Seed Vault built into the secure hardware.
• Easy, platform-wide transaction signing.
• SolanaPay for Android
• Store for decentralized applications (dApps)

In a blog post, Solana describes the situation as follows:

It’s time for crypto to go mobile.

“It’s time for the secure, biometric-integrated custody solutions we’ve been dreaming of, that have somehow failed to materialize on the roadmaps of the mobile giants. It’s time for an app store governed by users and developers, with no restrictions on tokens or NFTs, allowing for web3-native distribution models that could never be possible in the App Store and Google Play. These features have been technically possible for a while, so there’s no reason to keep waiting”.

Coinbase adds crypto on the Polygon and Solana networks

Solana is also featured in Coinbase‘s latest announcement about expanding its offering of cryptocurrencies that run on multiple networks. 

We’re making it faster, easier, and cheaper to access web3: over the next month, eligible Coinbase customers will be able to send and receive ETH, MATIC, and USDC on @0xPolygon and USDC on @solana.https://t.co/vVLnk1DTZ2 pic.twitter.com/j93F4rKd6C

— Coinbase (@coinbase) June 23, 2022

“We’re making it faster, easier, and cheaper to access web3: over the next month, eligible Coinbase customers will be able to send and receive ETH, MATIC, and USDC on @0xPolygon and USDC on @solana”.

And indeed, within the next month, Coinbase will offer its users the ability to send and receive Ethereum (ETH), Polygon (Matic) and USD Coin (USDC) on the Polygon network and the stablecoin USD Coin (USDC) which is also operational on Solana. 

While Solana is a Layer 1 blockchain, the integration of Polygon, on the other hand, marks the first time Coinbase is enabling the ability to send and receive these assets on an L2.

In addition to wanting to expand the service, Coinbase also specified that the choice to add new networks is to provide an alternative to Ethereum, which has become increasingly expensive for individual users and institutions. 

SOL price up 20% in last 7 days

The ninth-largest crypto by market capitalization, Solana (SOL) has experienced a 20% price pump in the past 7 days, rising from a price of $31.30 to nearly $40 today. 

Yet just a week ago, Solana experienced bug problems on its blockchain, crashing for four hours worldwide. 

Solana’s wallet, Phantom, also announced that it will launch a new update to further strengthen its security, after fixing a “demonic vulnerability” discovered by Halborn, the blockchain cybersecurity firm.