HHonor program makes a lot of sense for those of us who pay every dime from our pocket, i.e. the leisure travelers who dont have business travel and corporations to foot our bills.

The $450 AF card benefits pay itself and then some. Plus you dont need to earn the status "the hard way" the Marriott program would require. The spend is also so much lower, or no spend needed. comparing to the SPG Lux card.

Not everyone needs a suite upgrade or a high end off the top property. We could not care less the SPG off the chart properties whether in the French Polynesia (been there done that some 20 years ago when it was a far better place), nor the Maldives (boring to the bone in tiny atoll that 3 hours would be more than enough to round the island by foot), nor the Al Maha desert resort, not to mention the ugly Mystique on very touristy Santorini... Mid to High end of the range suit us just fine for our travels which often take us to places that not many chain properties to choose from, or 4P would be already a huge deal (think Ljubjiana, Slovenia, and it is a very nice 4P to be honest).
On top of that Hilton chain has enough convenient airport hotels especially in Europe, is a big plus. They are very smart now building out Hampton Inn and Hilton Garden Inn at more airport locations when you would need one for forced overnight. SPG has some but not enough and other than MXP, other locations are very old properties. Moxy and may be AC, are Marriott's answer but they dont provide breakfast benefit whether it is for everyone or for elite.

Not having to pay resort fee or the urban destination fee is meaningful to those of us who foot the bills out from our own pockets. The easiness and low cost to become eligible for breakfast across ALL brands is definitely a big plus. The beauty of that is, you only need to have the card WHEN your travel plan may call for the need to be an elite. You no longer are a slave to chase the status. That is a big money saver to many.