While it’s certainly possible that the WSJ decided “about $1,000″ was a good price to quote from analysts, there are at least as many people out there suggesting the device would be more like $600 – $800 — a price that would be much more attractive to consumers. With that in mind, and going along with my little thinking-out-loud-speculation here, I don’t think it’s impossible that Apple could have nudged WSJ towards the $1,000 predictors to temper expectations a bit.

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And there is a flip-side to all of this: Again, going along with my scenario, maybe Apple pointed towards the $1,000 price to set expectations very low in the weeks leading up to the event. That way, if they announce the device at $800, the public will erupt in applause, overjoyed that it’s not $1,000. Classic under promise, over deliver.

This is of course all just speculation, but I’m not so sure it’s that far out there. Certainly, I wouldn’t put any of the scenarios I laid out past Apple, which has a masterful hand when it comes to manipulating the media.

Okay the WSJ came out with a March ship date and something around a $1000 price tag. Regardless of whatever hemming and hawing is going on now, I'm looking at this news two ways.
One, at that price, chances are I'm not going to get one. Sure I'll drool over them, and wish I had one, but realistically, I'm not going to shuck out that kind of coin for an iTablet.
Two, this is going to sell a lot more "regular" eReaders like from Sony, Amazon, and whoever unveils something in the $200-400 price range at CES.
Which is awesome.
eReaders are just one part of the whole tablet continuum, and the more eBooks out there, the better I think.