> I don't want some device I have to build in a kit every couple of months. I'm beyond the point where I want to endlessly fiddle with technology. It's a waste of my time, and not something I do for fun.
But you realize that Google is pretty incompetent as a consumer support vendor? They're putting out changes to their "stock" android OS at least twice a year. For lollipop, they upgraded the phones months ago; but didn't even bother to upgrade the N7 (2013, razor/razorg) until a week or two ago. And almost every time, someone gets boned by a software glitch caused by the new release. Google does not give a tinker's damn when the device goes sideways on consumers.
I'm still running kitkat, figuring that I'm not going to even update my tablet until (lollipop) v5.1.1 is released as an automatic update. I'm pretty much terrified, at this point, every time Google puts out an upgrade, because their QA really sucks. As far as I'm concerned, fiddling with it is a guaranteed event, like a slackware/gentoo release from a decade ago, every time Google puts out an upgrade.
The sad truth is that its highly likely I will go iPad mini when my N7 dies on me. And I hate Apple. It strangles developers. Its as soulless as Google. Their products will never be the vanguard of technology. But Apple gives a damn about ensuring a flawless user experience. If the tablet goes sideways, they'll replace it. Their upgrades will fix things without introducing new problems. The question is whether that's worth the excessive margin they'll be extracting from your wallet.