> I think Apple / Google will continue to innovate (i.e. Siri vs Google Now) but to expect them to bring forth major fundamental changes to a stable, developed platform with a large user based is asking a bit much.

I don't expect them to. What they are doing is taking only proven successful features from each other, and making very minor tweaks otherwise. This is what incumbents do.

I'm lamenting on the fact that we -- programmers, power users, enthusiasts -- will likely have no where to turn in the near future as the "losers" of this cycle start falling off. We won't have the option to install an open source OS on our phones like we have with PCs.

> We won't have the option to install an open source OS on our phones like we have with PCs.

Except you're conveniently forgetting the fact that Android is open source. Google continues to release a phone each year with an unlocked bootloader, on which you can install versions of Android modified to your heart's content.

>>> Google continues to release a phone each year with an unlocked bootloader

Can I buy any phone, and then wipe it out and add any OS on it?

I think that is what the OP was driving at. And that would be quite something, compared to current state of affairs! :)

You can add any OS that wants to be added. IIRC you can put early builds of Firefox OS on a Nexus phone.

Of course, you can't put iOS on there, but that's Apple's choice.

My point was not that we don't have choice today (we do), it's that we're not going to have choice in the not-so-distant future as these other OSes die off (incluing Firefox OS).

Sure, you can root some Android devices and install Android ROMS like Cyanogen... but those are just Android. We're going to lose the creativity we're currently seeing in Jolla, Windows Phone, Firefox OS, Blackberry, etc.

Of course. I have a Nexus S with Firefox OS on it, for example.