If Nokia wanted Maemo to be an ongoing, living OSS project, they'd let other manufacturers make hardware to run it. In fact, they'd actively ENCOURAGE other manufacturers. With more platforms, there would be more impetus for developers to produce Maemo apps.
I have yet to see a low-power consumption "general purpose PC" using an OMAP3 or 4 processor. Seems to me that would be a great machine for commercial thin-client or embedded/kiosk uses, or netbooks, or other handhelds. AFAICS, there is no such hardware on the market--just the Nokia 700/800 series. (The few OMAP3 small computers I've seen have been like the
Glacier E2000--they stick you with miserable old Windows CE, take it or leave it. Or you get Android. Or you get a Palm Pre, and you're stuck with whatever that thing runs, and a devel community that only cares about porting old Palm OS apps to that new OS.....That's your choice. Want to install a more general-purpose OS? Sorry.)
This is likely to be a great little machine, and I'm probably going to buy one. Say what you will about the older Nokia tablets, they are valid handheld computers, the web browser is better than any on other handhelds, and their screens make the iPhone's display look pathetic. However, it would be nice to see Maemo enjoy a more diverse future, than running on a single Nokia handheld.