It would be worthwhile if some companies would just be willing to minimally invest into an open-source version of their interface and a safe way for developers

It would be worthwhile if some companies would just be willing to minimally invest into an open-source version of their interface and a safe way for developers and hardcore users to update their devices without bricking them. It might go nowhere, but if they're lucky, some really good interface ideas might pop up that could then be incorporated into the official product. This Walkman line and its embedded software has a relatively long lifespan, so a lot of people might benefit from improvements.