When discussing Solana, the very first characteristic that comes to mind is its speed. However, Solana is not just another effort to create a “fast” blockchain. Its architecture focuses on the efficient processing of many transactions through the change of relationships between various parts of the network.

One of those components is Proof of History (PoH), which functions similarly to the cryptographic clock and helps determine the sequence of actions in the network. Another feature of Solana is an account-based architecture in which programs and their data are separate, which enables the network to understand which accounts have to be read/written in each particular transaction.

There are also several parallel transactions processing mechanisms in place within Solana's architecture in case those transactions do not need the same data. In other words, it means that the system does not treat all transactions as dependent on one another.

Performance is important since some blockchain-based applications may become hard to use because of high latencies and unpredictable fee costs. The architecture of Solana seeks to provide a scalable environment for on-chain applications including payments, exchanges, and all kinds of financial applications. The Solana's documentation currently provides information about block times around 400 milliseconds and base fees, however, it depends on the current state of the network and activities performed.

However, there is no guarantee that the faster system is always better. The blockchain system needs to find a way to balance performance with reliability, security, decentralization, and resources needed for maintaining the system. Therefore, Solana has chosen its own approach to building the system rather than increasing one metric known as “transactions per second”.

This is why Solana is interesting. Its primary principle is not "make crypto faster". It's about designing the whole system in a way it will be able to handle more activity. Whether the system performs better depends on the application requirements.