Yes, it all comes down to Broadcom. Of course, that is a choice as well. They could've chosen a more open SoC, though there aren't many options. Most open hardw

Yes, it all comes down to Broadcom. Of course, that is a choice as well. They could've chosen a more open SoC, though there aren't many options. Most open hardware projects use the NxP (nee Freescale) i.MX series, which have open datasheets and open (with login) reference manuals. It makes sense that a bunch of ex-Broadcom engineers looking to make a cheap computer to educate children would use their connections at Broadcom to get an old cheap SoC. The closed schematics and bootloader do not matter to teaching kids scratch and python. I guess it isn't surprising that they haven't changed course since they've been so successful, but it is disappointing.