In that same vein, you could say the VP44 was not as problematic as it is either. Anybody that had to replace them multiple knows the fallacy of that statment. Same with the LP's on the filter housings. As a rule they are a problem and will fail at the most inopportune time. Consistently. They are barely adequate for stock power an fail miserably with added power where the in-tanks will support a decent power upgrade.
Actually living in AZ is what probably saves your from failure. Try to suck cold diesle in below 20 degree temps will kill them faster than anything. Sucking warm diesel is much easier than cold, that is a given. In warm climates the failure rate is lower becasue of the lack of environmental swings they see.
Any replacement pump has been less quality than OE for years, the replacement market just never met what the OE quality was and those pumps are NS1. The original filter mounted reciprocating piston pumps were better than anything but they went along a lot of other quality to cost cuts. The vane pumps with electronc controls on them are just not the same quality.
No argument on the in-tank pumps being harder to change, but, when seldom fail and deliver better performance it becomes a tradeoff of pros and cons.