A look at the Metavertu Web3 smartphone, a possible competitor for the Solana Saga

Metavertu is a web3 phone that was released in October 2022. It is a product from British high-end smartphone brand, Vertu, which is known for its unique designs, luxury materials, top-notch security features and VIP services. The brand’s latest offering, Metavertu, builds on this formula but also brings blockchain and crypto elements into the mix.

To begin with, the phone offers solid fundamentals, including a Qualcomm SnapDragon 8 Gen1 processing unit powered by a 4,600 mAh battery that reaches full charge in just 20 minutes. It also has a three-camera setup, with a 6.67 inch 2400×1080 AMOLED display. The phone also has different variants. The basic model comes with 12GB RAM and 512 gigabytes of internal storage. The pro variant takes things up a notch, with 18GB RAM and 1 terabyte of internal storage.

On top of these top-notch specifications, Metavertu also offers several features that are geared toward web3 users. For instance, users can create a highly secure crypto and NFT wallets with a mere click. Moreover, the private keys of these wallets will be stored on the device and will be protected by the phone’s trusted execution environment (TEE).

Users also have access to some very interesting DApps, which come preloaded on the phone. These DApps include Vshot, which allows users to turn photos into NFTs with just a few taps. Another DApp users have access to is VOS. This app turns the smartphone into an Ethereum validator, light node or light client. These capabilities will also allow users to mine certain cryptocurrencies without a computer.

The phone also has a decentralised messaging app called Vtalk which provides end-to-end encryption. Additionally, users can choose from several other such platforms through the phone’s DApp store.

Another impressive feature is the 10TB of extra memory space on the distributed storage platform, IPFS. And keeping with its VIP services, the Metavertu phone also has a “red button” that connects users to a concierge service that will offer guidance on NFTs and other web3 elements.

It also comes with an NFT pass that grants users exclusive access to several NFT whitelists and on-chain analysis tools. While Solana Saga does not offer any such feature, it is offering exclusive NFTs to the first 10,000 users who pre-book the device.

Of course, all these features come at a cost, with the base model of the Metavertu coming in at a whopping $3,600 – that’s nearly Rs 3 lahks. However, the pro variant with the optional Himalayan Alligator leather, 18K gold and diamonds, will set you back a massive $41,500 – coming up to a jaw-dropping Rs 34.5 lakhs. On the other hand, the Solana Saga is priced at around $1,000 – or roughly Rs 83,000.

However, if you consider the audiences that Metavertu is targeting, the prices may just make sense. The phone is meant for those who own BAYCs and Azukis, which cost millions of dollars. A recent study by MetaJuice that surveyed  6,000 buyers and sellers of NFTs found that 74 percent of the respondents purchase these digital assets for status.

Therefore, the Metavertu could also serve as a status symbol for this new generation of jet-set audiences, especially with its luxury materials and out-of-reach price tags. The Solana Saga, on the other hand, is more of an everyday phone that also allows users to trade tokens easily and securely, mint NFTs and access DApps.

The Metavertu, which claims to be the world's first web3 smartphone, definitely has all the tools and features that a web3 enthusiast needs. However, the phone’s price tag might put it out of reach for most traders and investors. Even the base model is more than 3 times the price of the Solana Saga. Therefore, Metavertu is less of a Saga competitor and more of a high-end web3 device. Regardless, the launch of web3 smartphones indicates the mainstream adoption of these digital assets and that’s definitely a good thing for the crypto industry.