Can't say I agree, if TOH comes closer to its original promise the 2nd time round, then there's a good chance the J2 will stand out much more than it otherwise would have.
They're not able to compete in the raw_specs/price game (we've endlessly gone into detail why that is)*, TOH -if done well- enables them to even the score just that little bit more.

Plus, it gives them another revenue_pool/"ecosystem" (one that's potentially very important for them LT) & way to stimulate growth.
I think they need to stick with it, keep plugging away but iterate/refine faster, & more ambitiously this time round, if they can...

BUT, if Google's Project Ara gets wheels, then maybe they should "throw in the towel" & focus on core_hw/BQ, & doing that much better for the $ than they did with the J1.
And focus more on the sw, especially the sw (i.e. the OS & systems/support for 3rd-party sw), but that should always be the main focus for them, regardless.

If you're saying you'd rather have an excellent Sailfish Handset/Tablet partner (Sony would be nice -but who am I kidding) who's offering much better specs & BQ for the $.
Rather than a J2 that's similarly mediocre hw-wise as the J1 was (for the $), but with the hook of a "new & improved" TOH, well, we're probably in agreement there over which to pick.

*if there's been a deal with Intel that equation may change -but we don't know yet