Brickable?

> What I'd like to see is a completely unbrickable router platform


As long as you have jtag access to the board's chipset/flash then it shouldn't be a big deal
at all. It's what I got to do at work when a programmer fubars a box. 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/JTAG

If you want to play around with Linux or programming other types of embedded devices it's a
life saver. The only downside is that some manufacturers only provide proprietary hardware and
drivers for windows.

This is what the DBoard is for OpenMoko 
http://wiki.openmoko.org/wiki/Neo1973_Debug_Board_v3

So if you want something that is friendly for hackers look for easy access to jtag port,
adapters, and documentation. (or equivalent) You may have to look up the actual parts on the
board and go to the chipset's manufacturer's website and such to get everything you need, but
this isn't a big deal. As long as you know which pins on the board are the jtag stuff.

Or maybe you may end up with a situation like many BIOS boards were you have a removable chip
that you'd need a special programmer for. Which is fine, as long as it's all documented and
the hardware for doing that is affordable.