I agree about your points, but ask your average consumer when the last time they used a Cat5 Ethernet connection was and you'll probably get a blank stare. Likewise, function keys. Anyone that's not a developer is likely to not even care about them.
One thing I always loved was that apple's lineup was so clear-cut that I never had to put a moment of thought into which model I needed.
If they go this direction, what's the differentiator between the Pro and non-Pro lines? non-pro doesn't get a 15" option and Pro doesn't get a 12" option? That's it?
I think the 'new macbook' is going to absorb the Air line and become "the perfect starbucks machine" in a couple of iterations (everything that currently holds it back, is everything that held the 1stgen Air back). They have the 'average consumer' machine right there. Don't try to make the Pro the 'average consumer' machine too.
I need it at customers place and also in the office - the WiFi is unreliable (but only on Macs, Thinkpads do not seem have that problem, go figure), I'm losing connection and the only way to reconnect is to toggle the WiFi off and on. It quickly gets tiring and the thunderbolt adapter solves that.
Think not relying on WiFi while giving a presentation.
I mean, yes, I agree, the average consumer is not going to use ethernet nor function keys. The average consumer is going to use the laptop to browse, write documents, watch videos and, maybe, do some basic media editing.
And that precisely is who the macbook line is for: slim, portable, affordable (in apple terms) and, let's be honest here, more than powerful enough to do anything you might want to do with it.
The pro line, as I understand it, was always oriented to professionals; people that maybe needed more from their computers. That usually means much more horsepower: More powerful chipsets, definitely more memory, in many cases a better/dedicated graphics card, better and larger drives... And yes, sometimes, function keys.
Usually, it also means having the ability to connect external stuff: a standard media output for meetings and presentations, a network connection (even today, plenty of companies don't have wifi, or if they have, it's a guest one), external storage, graphic tablets and plenty of other stuff. Sometimes you need all this at the same time.
Personally, I've found the sd card reader useful a few of times but I could do without it, the hdmi port has always been very useful, I'd like more than two usb ports, but they are usually enough and the only times I've used the lightning ports has been to use adapters for other stuff (like an ethernet cable).