I was going to more fully argue the intention, but since OP agreed with your assessment, I'll just give an anecdote that minimalism isn't a factor for me. I like 40s because I don't have to move my hands. It's more comfortable and I'm more accurate. I do software development and accounting work. I'm not fighting my keyboards at all. It truly is the most efficient way for me.

OP's keyboard is 12u though, and I personally think that anything under 13u forces you to fight the layout, particularly with development work.

Yes, I knocked over the plant and got a splinter in my wrist just by looking at this photo.

I'm rocking box navies. I love a heavy click in my keyboard, but it's distracting on the steam controller. Also, I'm only playing games after my kid goes to bed and I want the house to be quiet. The controller clicks overpower the volume of the TV.

It's not loud enough to hear from my kid's room. It's just annoying to me. I still like the controller quite a bit though, and I still use it.

The loud button clicks were my only complaint too. If they just made a new one the same as the old one, but heavier and silent buttons, I'd definitely buy another.

No idea. I never heard of shrimps until this post. Not sure what you mean by deep tactile. I don’t get a deep sound from mine, but mine are on brass.

Personally, I think the U4s are effing awful. I run them on my office board, so I only have to endure them for one week per quarter. They're quiet enough, but there are regular tactile switches that are quieter. One coworker has commented that while you can hear them just fine, they're not annoying.

The tactility is weak and they're scratchy. It feels like they have sandpaper in the stems. I didn't lube them since they were advertised as pre-lubed or not needing it or something. I think if I did pull them and lube them, I'd end up not feeling the tactile bump at all. There are much better options for silent linears, so I'll go that route later on.

I like my Zilents a lot, but they're louder than the U4s.