A £320 phone + 50€ license has nothing mandatory.
Although I regret my N900 and would have prefered to modernize it,
I’m using SFOS on a 80€ second hand XA2 since a year.
I am very happy with it.
I even could have avoided the license as I finally don’t need android.
But the license is the least I can do to give back to Jolla a bit.
I appreciate SF alternative OS so much that I even make donations to apps devs and/or pay them some coffees.
This formula seems more constructive to me than being alone and a bit sour with an expensive brand new phone.
Alternative OSes might perhaps be seen more as an ideal to reach, a philosophy, a common effort,
rather than
a typical consumer good with warranties and consumer service.
SFOS also can be tested on even cheaper devices before to decide to dedicate an expensive phone to it.