hiya paul, sorry cut all the context: the main thing is, these fabless semiconductor companies are increasingly seeing themselves as *solutions* providers *NOT* as "makers of processor designs". that's why they go to the lengths of creating the software (which is of course usually GPL-violating, except in ingenic's case).
they're looking to be the "one-stop-shop" for ODMs. we - the software libre community - are just "interfering". a total waste of their time. etc. etc.
shenzen is where all that breaks down. everything's available. it's chaos, it's uncontrollable, there's nothing anybody can do about it - government or companies: anyone can get anything, but what they they can't get is information about SoCs: that's up to you to find, elsewhere. the shenzen suppliers, you can get datasheets from them if they think you're serious. you have to know what you're doing. this makes the EOMA68 strategy *even more* sound as i've utilised parts that are entirely commonly available and in some cases have been for ten to twenty years. i've got another update coming out shortly about this.
so. the next thing to do is: find other SoCs. i'm going to start with the S5P6818 from nexell and the M150 from Ingenic. if the distributor i've been put in touch with about the S5P6818 doesn't respond soon i'll try a different approach. it's the SoCs that are the hard part: the laptop, microdesktop and the planned 1280x800 tablet housing, they're easy and once they're made there's *no need to change them* - ever. not unless one of the components goes EOL... across *all* the suppliers that make it in this hodge-podge called Shenzen where they copy each other like mad.
l.