Unfortunately, yes, having one's personal information accessible to large, private companies really doesn't matter to most people. The only people I know who really care about this stuff are tech people, stalking victims, and victims of domestic abuse. [Admittedly this is becoming more aware for women trying to get abortions, but they're also a minority shamed to silence most of the time.] This isn't going to change until there are real, public, personal stakes for the majority of people.
The whole thing is like an intentional vicious circle. People buy the systems because certain applications are available on them (or rather because that's what everyone does), and the application manufacturers support the systems where the most customers are expected. But if one takes an impartial look at which applications or functions are really needed for a company, there are certainly alternatives.
Unfortunately, the open source community sabotages itself, e.g. by constantly changing the ABI of essential functions and thus undermining the portability of non-open source applications (see e.g. https://hackertimes.com/item?id=32471624).
I find it very regrettable that now also on HN the flagging function is being misused more and more often to suppress other, but completely legitimate views. It is obvious that the majority of people are unaware of this problem or marginalize it, but that does not make it any less critical.
My statement was: Apparently, people prefer to buy expensive devices that eavesdrop and patronize them. As long as this continues and people don't run away from these manufacturers, they will continue with the trend and patronize people even more.
The hardware is difficult but people are working on it. If you really want all firmware to be open old Thinkpads are popular but I've never tried it myself. And Linux/*BSD should be your OS. I've been using Linux for over a decade and don't miss anything.
If your work mandates something you can't solve with Linux the issue is with your work and you should push to change that.
I think your comment would be better if it would at least humour the idea that people might have legitimate reasons for their preferences, even if they don’t match yours.
Such a state would not only be very unsocial (just think of the many elderly and disabled people, apart from the less well-off, who are unable to use such small screens and operating elements), but would also have to accept the question of why it is so interested in forcing such a device on every citizen.
This seems very unlikely to me, as Sweden is known to be one of the most social countries in Europe, and such a requirement would not only discriminate against the less well-off, but also against the elderly and disabled. It would be very surprising if a majority could be found for such a regulation in Sweden.
Sweden has one of the highest wealth disparity in europe, and it's increasing.
Also, as person living in sweden, let me tell you that marketing as inclusive is not the same as being inclusive. Spending money to let disabled people be able to get on trains, or checking that accessibility laws are respected (they aren't) are not things that happen in sweden.
Just last month I encountered a broken elevator at a train station. Which means no taking the train if you're on a wheelchair (and good luck with getting a refund). Even worse, if you actually were on the train, you're now stuck on the platform and can't leave until the next train shows up. Of course to buy the ticket for the next train you will need a smartphone.
