I think therein lies the problem...if Apple were to release it's OS for general use, then it'd run the risk of turning into Windows. There's simply too much hardware for it to support reliably, because not all programmers are as skilled as the ones they hire for their hardware. Mac would be just as buggy as Windows if they did a general release of OS X.
(1) You could argue that Mac limits their hardware to their own for smooth operation, but if you really try doing an iMovie project with a consumer HD camcorder and 1GB RAM/5400rpm HDD on the Mini, you'd see the experience is not so "smooth" after all.
I think this is the gap that EFI-X is trying to fill...it fills that niche for consumer power users who don't have $2,800 to spend on a nice machine and don't want the limitations and expense that the iMac offers (limited RAM, non-upgradable CPU, built-in screen, etc.). There's no mid-range Mac for those of us who want a built-in Time Machine drive, 8 gigs of RAM, and a quad-core processor. It's kind of a tough situation. Apple is turning into Microsoft, in some ways. I was just reading a good article at Newsweek on the topic:
http://www.newsweek.com/id/157545
I really like Apple, but some of their business practices aren't so great and they've had some annoying flaws lately (buggy iPhone firmware, glitchy MobileMe rollout, etc.). One of the reasons that it's a tough situation is that Apple tries very hard to make good products and now that their user base has expanded, they've come under more scrutiny than in the past. Every flaw, mistake, and rumor is notice.
Although I do hope Psytar wins so that I can have a cheap Mac,
(2) I also hope Psytar doesn't win so that we can continue to have good Apple products. Pystar makes really crappy computers anyway...all of the reviews I've read said that they are loud and used cheap parts, which is lame - you can do better for the same price and still make a profit. I think it would have been better if they had released some quality clones instead of junker clones, haha.
I don't know...I have mixed feelings on the subject. On one hand, Apple is kind of running a monopoly - no one else can make Apple computers. They're a billion-dollar company and almost all of the money goes back into themselves. On the other hand, I enjoy my Apple products and Apple is a well-run company from a business standpoint...they probably need vacuums to suck up all the money they've been getting in lately. It's a tough call and I'll be following this intently.