Right, but I for one don't desire
hardware configurability -- in fact, just the thought if it makes me shudder.

I wish to buy a piece of hardware, and be
done with it -- never have to waste another minute of thinking about
hardware again. I need to focus on my
work, not my work
tools. In that sense, Apple are world champions; I've never owned more reliable pieces of machinery than all these Apple gadgets.
I wish I could say the same about Apple
software, but I can't. The functionality is too limited, but it cannot be extended (other than,
sometimes, by 3rd-party software). The looks are ugly, but they cannot be changed or customised. That's just sad.