Chromebook disappointed me totally

Google has announced the release of Chromebook at US$499. No, this is totally not attractive. My expectation is that Chromebook should be sold below US$300.

Chromebook is no more than a thin client with the difference that the underlying OS is the Chrome browser. There might be arguments that it offers the benefits of fast boot-up (in a matter of less than 10 seconds), longer battery use, and better security (no virus software, sandboxing approach to protect end users). But are these benefits justified for the high cost ?  I would rather add some money buy an ipad2 (US$629) or Android 3.0 tablet which offer me more functionalities, applications and computing powers.