I'm just sort of living in place where I'm in a bubble that's a kind of unachievable utopia, where I can go online, order a cheap motherboard/processor etc - or alternatively, decide on something more powerful, put it all together and install some decent software in it... and with a little bit of configuring, have it up and running the same day all the parts arrived.

The same should be true of
mobile/portable components.
E.g buy an atom x5 or a snapdragon or whatever - combined with small board, add some ram and a way to power it. Have options for a screen to be attached, or a keyboard etc. - all depending on just HOW mobile (or not) you wanted it to be.

Is this all just too much mix&match that will never have a software partner?

I'm definitely no expert, but I'm definitely an end user, and I've seen other end users ask similar questions on different forums, and a couple on here - there could be a huge exploitable market there for some entrepreneurs, or just those with the skillz to knock up a few devices and sell them to some people pre installed with a few things. There are a few kickstarters and indiegogo's that I've mentioned earliee in the thread that have massively blown away their original funding targets. These are nostly windows devices - or android - sometimes both.

As I said I am definitely no expert on any of this, and some may think I don't know what I am talking about with a lot of things.
That is true - I don't know what I'm talking about with some / a lot of this. What I do know is what I'd like to be able to do, and what kind of device options I'd like to be able to do it on.

In my own humble opinion, I think more and more people are sick fed up of being force-fed little rectangles with no buttons on them, and being told this is what they like/should like. If people want something different they get told to "just get a laptop then".
I am not saying that's what happens here, before anyone gets the wrong end of the stick- just the general feedback from people all over. Talk.maemo is one of the safe havens where you can actually talk about new ideas etc.

Again my own opinion - where the sailfish goes wrong is trying to make things look almost exactly like a "normal" phone. I feel like we're in that episode of the Simpsons where they made everyone wear black and white/grey clothes. The Jolla just looked to me like another shade of grey.

Please don't think this is some big rant - lol. I just had a lot to put out there

Windows and android are alreadh To return back to where I started, in my utopian dream world bubble, where I could get a few bits and stick them together how I wanted.... People are actually doing this with windows and android devices, and selling bucket loads of them... right now - available to order today - receive within a few days... so don't nobody tell me there's no demand for a portable device that's not (just) a phone, and isn't like a laptop or tablet. (That statement isn't directed here on this forum- just a general shout out to the universe).

It's happening now and Linux as a whole is getting left far behind.

Something like maemo, dual booting with debian, on a form factor of something like the Gole1, (with a keyboard).. that fits in a (big) pocket would IMO clean up in today's market.