"the benefits of using it as a means of transacting" sadly there are no benefits as far as transacting. It takes longer and longer by the day and the fees are around $20 to $30.
248924 unconfirmed transactions as we speak. I had to pay $60 in fees to get my Bitcoin to an exchange to try and take advantage of an alt selling low and 12 hours later when it came through I had well and truly missed the boat. I just sent SBD to Bittrex and it took 5 minutes.
Bitcoin is a dinosaur and it is getting found out.
I agree that it isn't beneficial for mass transactions but that is what alt coins are for! You have to think of Bitcoin as gold, where there is a finite amount and demand is high due to its scarcity and perceived value. People used to transact with gold but clearly that model became out dated to the point we evolved to today's fiat currency; which clearly has its faults/benefits as well. Bitcoin has value due to its transparency of open ledger, the manner of protecting our money from state seizure, and if crypto currency continues along the trend as a replacement for fiat currency, then Bitcoin would be a good platform for transferring your money into an appreciating asset vs a depreciating asset, aka the US dollar, etc. Plus, Bitcoin is so heavily relied on for transacting for alt coins, so I don't think it will go anywhere anytime soon. I do agree that ETH will take a good amount of market share in the future as they have a great platform!
If I had the option of taking 30 bars of gold or 30 Bitcoin, that I had to put away for my retirement and not touch for 20-30 years I would 100% choose gold. Bitcoin is just way to volatile (as today proves once again).
I would love you to be right though.