The problem is that contrary to x86 the stack powering Android phones isn’t made for OS portability.
On x86 the basic concept is “There’s one OS image/distro and it runs on everything”. You can take one Debian iso and it will run on close to every x86/x64 PC out there.
Android phones don’t work like that. Every image needs to be custom-fitted to exactly the hardware it runs on.
That makes it hugely difficult for Linux-on-Android-phones to just work on any phone, which again makes it very difficult for the already-cash-strapped hobbyist Linux-on-phones projects that are out there to actually support all the hardware on the phones.
If Valve would make such a thing as SteamOS on phones, it would be specific SteamOS phones, not SteamOS as a custom ROM for random phones.
Only if the phone hardware is closed and locked. If not for chip manufacturer patents, stock Debian would run no problem on every new phone a week or two after it hit the shelves (if not sooner, like when friendly vendors send early hardware out to developers).
Instead, every revision of every model phone has a bunch of unique black-box bullshit that must be reverse-engineered, all of which expressly exists to keep you from using your hardware the way you want.
You know all of this.
The point (that you made, that) I want to emphasize is: Valve is a hardware manufacturer now.
And I would absolutely buy an AARCH64 Steam Deck that could replace my Android.
The problem is that contrary to x86 the stack powering Android phones isn’t made for OS portability.
On x86 the basic concept is “There’s one OS image/distro and it runs on everything”. You can take one Debian iso and it will run on close to every x86/x64 PC out there.
Android phones don’t work like that. Every image needs to be custom-fitted to exactly the hardware it runs on.
That makes it hugely difficult for Linux-on-Android-phones to just work on any phone, which again makes it very difficult for the already-cash-strapped hobbyist Linux-on-phones projects that are out there to actually support all the hardware on the phones.
If Valve would make such a thing as SteamOS on phones, it would be specific SteamOS phones, not SteamOS as a custom ROM for random phones.
Only if the phone hardware is closed and locked. If not for chip manufacturer patents, stock Debian would run no problem on every new phone a week or two after it hit the shelves (if not sooner, like when friendly vendors send early hardware out to developers).
Instead, every revision of every model phone has a bunch of unique black-box bullshit that must be reverse-engineered, all of which expressly exists to keep you from using your hardware the way you want.
You know all of this.
The point (that you made, that) I want to emphasize is: Valve is a hardware manufacturer now.
And I would absolutely buy an AARCH64 Steam Deck that could replace my Android.