[svnt]

There is a big difference in just about everything relating to selling something with a sub $10 BOM and something approximating a “sub $100 dev board.”

The difference in unit volumes drives wide variances in tolerances of additional development difficulty/cost.

[Joel_Mckay]

Indeed, the economics of chip component choices at scale change development priorities. Depends on the use-case, and how much people are willing to compromise on the design. Performant SoC and Flash memory are no longer premium budget choices.

Some people seem irrationally passionate about the code smell of their own brand. =3