I was looking forward for this review for quite some time n0nce, it's awesome to be able to finally read it! As for the device, FE2 improved in the topics that I hoped (mostly battery + screen), but it's sad to hear that the keyboard has a "bland" touch. Granted, for sure it's great that they improved the other two areas, but I was hoping that the keyboard and camera would still be left untouched regarding quality and "feeling", but it seems that isn't the case. The positive news that I can take from this is that this mostly can be solved by a future software update (or at least I hope so). This particular paragraph activated my "paranoid" sense:
It's worth noting that it did improve a bit over time, especially the most used (numbers and navigation) keys.
I know that the odds are very, very slim, but assuming that someone got a hold of the device, could they extrapolate, based on the "used keys" on the keyboard, your PIN code? I know the odds are slim, but this idea just came to my mind ...
I still think that one downside of the device is the premium price - If I were to purchase one I would be looking at 330 (Model T would be around 270 with support to multiple cryptocurrencies) - but I reckon that the only way to deal with the high price would be to have a manufacturing unit somewhere in Europe and for sure that isn't the plan in the short term. Like you said n0nce, the best option would be a FE2A option (similar to the Pixel A line) where they would go down on the materials to the bare minimum to try and still deliver a sustainable device.
Once again, thank you for the superb review!
PS: @zachherbert is quite active on Twitter so it would be really awesome to see him reply (or even promote!) your thread over there. Let's hope he manages to come here!