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Comment by conradfr | Hacker News Reader

Can't there be a manufacturer that would make vanilla Android like Google with the Nexus brand ?

We would need that especially when a LG can't get enough stock.

As much as we techies would like it, there isn't a mass market for stock Android devices. Most people don't care.

I thought that the recent sales of the Nexus {4,7,10} showed exactly the opposite. There is still the possibility that the supply of those devices has been short on purpose, but I haven't seen anything reliable to back that claim up.

Most people want Vanilla devices and we techies want everybody else to have Vanilla Android devices because it reduces the amount of fragmentation we have to deal with when building things. Additionally I have literally never seen OEM additions in mobile or desktop computing make something better for the end-user and everybody should just get over with it.

To be fair, the Nexus 4/7/10 devices are being sold at or near cost. That model isn't really tenable for manufacturers who aren't getting support from Google.

Most people want Vanilla device

That's exactly what I don't believe. To someone not in the know vanilla, stock, or standard all sounds sub-optimal. Android With Sense? I'm getting Sense for free. Why wouldn't I want that?

I doubt stock Android had anything to do with it.

The Nexus 4 is a good smart phone at iPod Touch prices. Who doesn't want that?

If customers don't care (and I think you're right), why ALL manufacturers spend so much money to make custom UI, especially as that prevent quicker system update (or any update at all sometimes) ?

Sure. But what would drive the sales of these devices?

They would be just another 'vanilla Android' in a sea of 'vanilla Androids'.

Design, hardware features, reliability, customer service, branding, price. You know. Like every other industry.

> Design, hardware features,

No longer vanilla.

I really have no idea what you mean by that.

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