Bitcoin and Ethereum were created for entirely different purposes and they are indeed serving the targeted audience instead of shitcoins which has been created just to lure the maximum money from investors. Cryptocurrency market as we know today have outgrown only because of the builders who were present on Ethereum and not on Bitcoin. Bitcoin on the other hand, never allows the developers to build solutions on top of the currency unlike Ethereum which has been created for the sole purpose of improving the usability of cryptocurrencies other than using them as a mere currency as opposed to the governments.
I have been a hardcore Bitcoin enthusiast in the past and I would like to admit that sadly, but after learning about the technicalities of Ethereum back in 2020 and becoming a Smart Contract Developer recently my respect towards the Ethereum community has risen significantly. Ethereum was never meant to be used as a Digital Gold and stacking them would never be as fruitful or profitable as Bitcoin since Bitcoin is finite and never rises up in supply unlike other Smart Contract currencies such as ETH, BNB, SOL or MATIC which acts as a fuel for the smart contract platforms.
In a lot of ways, Solana is better than Ethereum and that was the reason it got good support initially. They were going well earlier but the way the team is handling the project now does not make any sense in investing in that project. There was a time when it was trading at a price of $260 at the moment it is down by 93% and I do not think it will go up anytime soon. It is a possibility that the next Bitcoin bull market might recover the price.
Just like the rivalry between Microsoft and Apple in the early 90s where Mac would be announcing and designing entirely the opposite of what Windows does, Ethereum and Solana have become the rivals in Web3.0 space but right at the moment the development and community support on Ethereum is insanely high which cannot be compared towards the Solana community. To fuel this forward, after the shocking demise of FTX last year the inflow of funds from investors have gone down significantly which has caused a greater dent in the developer community of Solana. Even Ethereum was down badly by 90% in 2018 bear market but they were never really affected by any external sources such as how FTX played the game in pumping their Solana Bag. Almost 90% of the innovations happen only on Ethereum and Solana is lagging behind and as you stated, there needs to be greater catalyst for Solana to move forward in the next run.