First of all the vendorid:productid code specify the chipset model, not the device model.
You do need to realize though that different cards have the same vendorid:productid in many cases. Companies re-brand cards
This is true, we have faced the problem some time ago. Each device can have also a subvendor code and a subproduct code (you can find those codes listed by the lspci command), added by the seller, but the vendorid:productid code is the same.
We have decided not to list those subcodes but to use two different entries, one for the chipset name (linked to the vendorid:productid code) and one for the device names (the device name can be changed by the seller as pointed out by you so the users are free to specify one ore more names)
So please remember that if a user or a seller verify that the vendorid:productid of a device is the same as the vendorid:productid found on h-node, this means that he is verifying that the chipset is the same (not the device re-branded, but the chpset) vendorid:productid <-> chipset
In this way we can assure that the device does work because we are verifying that the chipset is the same (same vendorid:productid code).
After that, we have two different cases:
Case 1: a user already own the device or a seller want to sell a device. Both of them would like to know if that device works with free software. Both of them can browser the website or use one of the features that will be ready in the near future (client and so on) and check the vendorid:productid of that device and read if that device works or not.
So h-node can already be used by the sellers to choose the devices that should be sold.. they have only to sell those devices listed at h-node and check the vendorid:productid code, that is the chipset version. Perhaps the database isn't still enough complete, we can discuss about this.
Case 2: the user has to buy a new device. In this case, as pointed out by you, the user can't use the vendorid:productid code. I really understand the problem. You say the model name is not enough to help a user, that h-node is basically useless and that it's impossible to maintain such a database.
Perhaps this is right, but what's the alternatives. None of the sites/sellers indicated by you could be used for the purpose (let the sellers to certify the trusted hardware) since they all speak about Linux, Ubuntu and so on, that is something that is not related to free software. So please find a new list of companies.
We are trying to catalogue all the devices that works or not with free software, I think we could reach the goal thanks to the vendorid:productid code. Perhaps we could, in the future, make a list of companies that also sell notebooks with fully free distros already installed or a list of companies that sell devices that are also listed at h-node.com.
Sellers are the ones making money and the one with the resources to verify. Not h-node.com. H-node can only help sellers narrow down the cards / peripherals / chipsets / and so on in which to investigate.
So please write here the names of the sellers we should contact and that should make the work of verifying the devices