Yea, that entry level config also didn't have any hard drive built-in and was simply to replace the Plus period at a lower price ...There was a better more expensive config with that non-standard RAM board already installed resulting in 2MB of RAM and a 40MB hard drive installed too that was ready for System 7 (which needed both of these things)

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Yes, but even the Plus was selling with 2MB stock at the end. And unlike the Plus, if you did not upgrade the RAM board right away after you dropped $1,000, you were screwed – Remember System 7 was the first users had to pay for too, so many Classic users opted out. Many Classics I have seen are missing the RAM board. You sound like an Apple marketing brochure defending the Classic. A hard drive could be added anytime for years afterward, but not that RAM card. It trapped a lot of people into that 1MB configuration. The point remains, it was a bad decision by Apple in the long run and left SE users no options until the Color Classic, which offered no improvement over the SE/30. Apple came to see the compact as an entry-level model to be phased out, and never produced a superior compact to the SE/30.

Also, Apple advertised the Classic as being 25% faster than the Plus, and the SE as being 15-20% faster. However, I believe I have seen benchmark tests which indicate the SE was faster than the Classic in some real world tests. I might be wrong since I can't currently find anything to prove or disprove. I leave it to others expertise.