Solana Is Expanding the World of NFTs

[TL:DR]

1. Solana is helping to expand the NFT ecosystem.
2. Solana offers cheaper minting fees and higher processing times on its blockchain.
3. The Solana community is rapidly increasing and a wide variety of NFTs are available on the supported marketplaces.
4. Be sure to check out the NFT marketplace on Gate.io.

The NFT world has been buzzing with excitement in recent times. Almost every day some new and exciting collections are dropped. While Ethereum has been reigning as the go-to blockchain for NFT lovers, other popular platforms are also quickly catching up and capitalizing on the limitations of Ethereum. The high gas fee of Ethereum has pushed users to the virtually gas-free Solana blockchain.

NFTs on Solana VS NFTs on Ethereum

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Solana operates on the Proof-of-History (PoH) protocol. This consensus mechanism builds upon the Proof of Stake consensus and is deemed to be highly environmentally friendly. The network itself is fast and has low congestion while transactions on the network cost small cents rather than the hundreds of dollars that Ethereum users have to pay.

A quick comparison of these two top platforms is given below:

Quite recently, all-time NFT sales on Solana reached the important milestone of $1 Billion. In September 2021, a Degenerate Ape Academy NFT earned the status of the first Solana NFT to cross the $1 million mark. Soon afterward it was surpassed by another NFT which sold for $2.1 million to become the most expensive NFT to be sold on the Solana blockchain.
The Solana community is rapidly increasing and a wide variety of NFTs are available on the supported marketplaces. In terms of userbase and variety of NFTs, it is not much far behind Ethereum. Even though Ethereum has an edge of being the industry leader, Solana is quickly improving and offering some of the user concerns like security and potential congestion is being patched up. It no doubt has the potential to become a top NFT medium in the future.

Popular NFT Projects on Solana

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There is no shortage of new and exciting NFT projects on Solana. Solana boasts over 5.7 Million different NFTs with a market cap of approximately 970 Million. Solanart, Magic Eden, and Solsea are three major marketplaces for Solana NFTs.

One of the most popular NFT projects on Solana is the Degenerate Ape Academy. You may term it somewhat similar to the Bored Ape collection. The whole collection of these 10,000 unique 3D apes sold out in mere 8 minutes. According to solanalysis, the average price of a Degenerate Ape is 71.5 SOL.

Other popular NFT projects on Solana include Solana Monkey Business, Shadowy Super Coder DAO, Portals, and Boryoku Dragons.

Source: https://www.solanalysis.com/

You can also keep track of the upcoming NFTs on Solana through sources like NFT Calendar and NFT SOL Calendar so that you do not miss out on the opportunity to grab a unique NFT from one of the exciting new entrants.

How Does Minting Work?

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With so much talk about NFTs, it is important to take a quick look at what minting is and how is it done on the Solana network.

Simply put, minting an NFT comprises a few simple steps like connecting a compatible wallet to the marketplace and listing your NFT for sale or to trade. You may even keep the NFT for yourself if you do not wish to sell it. Minting an NFT allows you to preserve and store the value of your digital asset in a tangible way.

Minting an NFT in Solana works on the same principle. Instead of the typical Metamask wallet, you will need a Phantom wallet to get started. A few other options like Sollet and Math Wallet are also available. Once you have chosen your wallet and deposited the native token of Solana (SOL) in it, you are ready to choose your NFT and start minting. The beauty of Solana is that it takes just seconds to mint and you rarely get to see failure. On the other hand, Ethereum is plagued by an overcrowded transaction queue and high gas fees.

What the Future Holds for Solana

The blockchain industry is evolving at such a rapid pace that it is hard to precisely predict what the future would look like for Solana. New and promising layer 2 protocols are also constantly emerging. Also, with the planned upgrades in the Ethereum network, some of the drawbacks that forced users to shift to Solana might be reduced.

Despite all this, Solana has very solid technology and is building upon its massive community. Its high throughput, scalable architecture, low fees, and seamless minting experience make it a top choice in the world of NFTs. The Solana team is also constantly working on bringing new and exciting updates to the network. Solana is definitely set to be among the top contenders in this space.

NFTs in general are changing the way we interact with each other, as well as the way people exchange and secure value. Solana is really helping to bring this vision to the masses along with other chains. In fact, you can also acquire NFTs directly on Gate.io and you can check out how that works right here - NFT projects on Gate.io here.

Thanks for reading and stay tuned for more updates as the NFT space continues to evolve and expand.



Author: Gate.io Researcher: Chuk. U
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