I think their early adopters being niche tech nerds is a very different concept than who they are targeting through their marketing.

Scroll down the marketing page and take note of which subjects take up the largest chunk of the page space:

https://us.fairphone.com/the-fairphone-gen-6-plus

The first section talks about a long warranty and sustainability. It talks about long battery life and the replaceable battery.

The next section, which is rather large, talks about the camera benefits. This is a huge section and is a very mainstream selling point.

Next is AI and Gemini, a small section.

Next is Moments, their phone mindfulness suite aimed at people battling smartphone attention/addiction issues, a very common concern among users.

Finally, the last section talks about sustainability as well as tips on switching and “what’s in the box.”

So really, zero of the marketing is aimed at niche buyers. They’re looking to sell to people who want a very normal phone experience but want something long-lasting, intentional, and sustainable, and they still need it primarily as a device to capture photos and memories as well as all the normal daily life use you’d expect.

There is zero mention of niche/nerdy features in the marketing. Tinkering and software customization is never mentioned. Professional/enthusiast use cases are never mentioned. There’s nothing talking about terminal emulation or alternative operating systems or anything of that sort.