This is my point. The harness itself creates feelings that are positive, but the artifacts produced are similar.

It is like the employee who is slightly worse but is a brownnoser getting promoted more often.

And what do you know, that is what is happening. It is like the coke commercial with the nice music and beautiful person in the back.

The creative output and time to direct, to deliver due to the flow will also be different.

And it really depends on the task. Is it a typical well defined bug, or is it simpel CRUD. Or does it require research, combining different sources of data in a complex and creative ways.

This is also why benches never show reality, and the only real understanding comes if you actually try to build something.

But what they're pointing out is user experience, not marketing.

That's a weird way to look at it. Any car gets you to your destination, but some people prefer driving a sports car or an SUV. They get something out of it that isn't just a marketing delusion, but subjective joy from the interaction with one product over another.