Originally Posted by mstateglfr

The only appeal for 12sp, to me, would be if I ran 1x.
and since shimano isnt the trendy brand for 1x, as well as i have no desire to use 1x on my road/gravel/touring bikes, there is no actual appeal to me for Shimano road 12sp.

adding another cog within an 11-28 cassette or even an 11-34 cassette holds no appeal.

for 1x it would be useful as a 12th cog in an 11-42t cassette helps make the jumps a bit smaller.

I could see 12sp being successful for road if only because it'll be used for new bikes and those with upgradeitis.
if someone wants new Ultegra for example, they would have to get the 12sp. And simce I think very few seek out something like Sora as an upgrade(even if it moves to 10sp), if a bike is running 8sp for example and the owner wants to upgrade, they will often go for the newest(12sp) but not the ultimate(duraace).