Mainstream consumers will go starry eyed and squeal "ooh shiny" at any device that looks good without caring about the positive or negative points of said device - It doesn't matter if those points are based on the quality of hardware, or software or the openness of the the device or how the future is going to be shaped if you chose one type of device over another.

Then why bother?

From my pov, the reason I bother and so much want Meego and Linux to succeed as a mobile platform, is because I remember the not-so-ancient history where MS won over the desktop market and made it so that competition was stifled and snuffed out and innovation was limited to the path that MS allowed.

As a company, MS did what it should have done - increase it's bottom line. It ushered in the PC era. Kudos at a job well done. Apple is pretty much similar to MS in those respects.

I believe in balance. If the Apples and Microsofts of the world had complete control over the markets as once MS did, then there is no competition to keep them truthful.

I believe that Linux, Meego and the community that supports it, is the balance that will foster competition and innovation that will most benefit the users and consumers.

In summary, most consumers do not care about the future as much as they should when choosing a device. I do.
Maybe you should too.