There's a lot that could be said about Wizards' new game, much has been said already, and a majority of it I will continue to say. Here's my two cents on the devil's advocate side: Wizards' saw the currents in their target market change. There are 11.5 Million WoW subscribers; many are probably roleplayers as well as online gamers. Many probably roleplay online. WotC was looking for a way to capitalize on an existing market, something that I can't fault them for. WoW gives players a sense of accomplishment every time they advance a level by giving them a boost to their core attributes. A lot of the appeal of the game is based on this algorithmic advancement scheme, and WotC creating a new game that takes advantage of the players' sense of accomplishment is a way for them to cash in on the prize.
I'm sure a lot of new players to 4th Edition are old WoW players. This is not a bad thing, because the probably got into 4th for two reasons: 1) their buddies got them into it; and 2) they're looking for something more from their roleplaying game. 4th Edition is a good analogue for the WoW universe for that first-time tabletop gamer. In fact, I dare say it could be a jumping off point for other games, such as World of Darkness, Shadowrun or, dare I say, D&D 3rd Edition. All these games are complex, force you to work a little harder for your advancement, and honestly may be for a slightly more advanced crowd (aside: is 3rd edition really 4th edition advanced?).
Here's hoping.
The game has its good points. The combat system has been smoothed over. The powers system shows that things can in fact be simplified into little boxes. The minion mechanics are something I adore and have adapted 3.5 for it.
With all that said, I agree with you. 4th Edition is not D&D. In fact, you'll find that I haven't called it D&D at all in the above paragraphs. Character customization, character options, common combat options, the common pool of spells, decent formatting and editing, and classes able to multitask (druids and bards, for example) have all been tossed out the window. I've said it before, but I'll say it again: for me to run a game of 4th edition, I need, in addition to the core books, Martial Power, Divine Power, Arcane Power, and the Player's Handbook 2. That's seven books total, a ludicrous amount for starting a game. The game has its upsides, definitely, but it's just not my Dungeons and Dragons anymore.