It saddens me when people don't get the point of a metaphor, and instead lean on the metaphor to discard the argument behind.

In this case, the point of the metaphor was to say that something obscure and barely sold/marketed is not a valid candidate for the "first X", where X, like "home computer" implies adoption.

Whether the parent used inflatable sheep or VCRs or thermometers as their metaphor is besides the point -- as the core of the analogy (the argument) remains the same.

It's also obvious that he used the sheep analogy for extra color/fun.