It’s not so much about esthetics as it is about how the OT works. Really it’s workflow. Part of that is the ui, and hardware I guess yeah. I imagine I could work with it, but DT has a couple of features I really like, conditional tries is one.
Overbridge support is another big plus for me. As recording all 8 tracks into a DAW is something I really need.
But the things you point out do make a lot of sense, and I’m hoping a OT mkii will be made some day. Let’s hope so 