No offense, but I shall be going on a rant that will include most of my Bills brothers in this thread....
Your criticism is unfounded. Were you at MWSF? Did you read the reports from there? I'm guessing no...
Flash-based players had 62% of the market in 2003 - the iPod mini reduced that to 29%. Now, Apple has targeted the remaining 29% who see a value in extremely small devices. They DID NOT claim to reinvent the wheel. They ARE expanding their product line to appeal to users who have different needs.
Considering Apple is kicking the absolute SNOT out of every single competitor in this area - with higher prices - maybe pausing to actually evaluate their new product would be worthwhile.