The x86 compatibility is what is amazing here. I almost used the processor that the Edison uses on this year's Defcon badges for that very reason...
Good to see you understand the purpose and design constraints oh so well...
apt-get whatever works just fine on arm
Maybe the person who measured this hasn't used sleep modes properly?
I'm guessing the reason is cost (I think the quark chip alone is $9, + DDR3 memory + cost for BGA placements + 4 layer impedance controlled boards etc...)