The owner's pride expressed by Wave Music System owners strikes me as being quite similar to the feelings of many High End audio owners about their precious equipment. It's said that in a restaurant the "sizzle" sells the steak. I guess that a good part of the price of a Bose is for the sizzle.
I don't own one, or any similar table radio, but there are certainly places where it fits the bill. Overpriced? (Again, compare High End audio). Probably, but sometimes we don't care.