Imaginary or not, the mere thought of Apple making an iSlate has the rest of the industry scrambling. I think that fact alone helps to justify at least a slight pass for Apple...
Why?
That doesn't say anything about Apple's [imaginary] product. It only says something about the industry.
And let me repeat myself: I didn't say the product wouldn't be good. I said that it will be a commercial failure. I happen to like the AppleTV very much**, and everyone considers that a failed product. And lets not talk about the Hi-Fi. I just think that there's no market for tablet computers. We already have a successful tablet: it's called the iPod Touch.
**well, I like the AppleTV aside from Apple's hideous codec limitaions, which have caused me, on several occasions, to loose my f***ing mind.
*edit*
And when I say "there's no market," I mean there's no iPod- or iPhone-sized market, and that's the manner the industry is reacting in.