[paavoova]

> Workstations need to be totally user-controlled, but phones don't

And why this extreme generalization, exactly? Don't you suppose you could have privacy, security, and perhaps even simplicity and ease-of-use with a totally free and open phone that grants control to the user? You really don't explain how "a totally open platform" is mutually exclusive, nor how your own personal needs require the inverse of freedom. Further, the distinction between computer and mobile device are irrelevant given so many people depend on the later as their main computing device. They should be offered the same degree of control as someone with a computer has.

Ultimately, you cannot have privacy and security in a closed-source restricted platform, even if it's backed by good intentions. You're at the mercy of a few companies and as soon as they abandon the device, or make a mistake, you're exposed. And as a consumer, you're forced to buy into their ecosystem instead of having the choice to provide your own solutions. This is already true for the hardware, such as the black-box baseband required to connect to cellular networks.

[_bxg1]

The two forces are, generally, at odds. Apple screens apps for me to see if they're malicious or snoop my data. They ensure the things on the App Store are of a certain quality and safety. If they discover one that got through, I'm glad they can remove it from my device without waiting on my action. I've effectively outsourced my configuration and security to a company that has strong financial incentives to do a good job at those tasks - certainly a better job than I would do if I had to keep tabs on it all myself. They also do far less "abandoning of devices" than most of their competitors, for what it's worth.

While this kind of support doesn't technically preclude open-source code, it's hard to find both in one. Red Hat is one rare exception to this - providing a comprehensive, supported solution that also happens to be open-source. But the economics tend to push it to be one or the other. In this case, I'm perfectly fine making that trade.