Yes.. it is a *a* flaw I see.. but the problem here isn't so much the Open Development as the consumers.

If the consumers of the N8x0 devices were more willing to pay for apps from developers, or at least consistently donate, then more apps would be made for them. Unfortunately, most of the consumers of a device like this want Free Apps.. and as such - when your device isn't the hottest thing on the market you get left behind. Nature of the beast.

I personally have not purchased or bought a single app on my Google G1 phone... I always find free ones. They may not be "open source" free.. but free to me to use.

I have also donated to apps that were free.. although admittedly not as much as I should.

But how many people can actually say they've donated for a Free app? How many people have sent money to Mandrake, Ubuntu, SuSE, etc.. for their work on free operating systems?

There is obviously *some*.. those distro's -do- make money.. but I haven't seen much in the mobile community.