If all you care about is playing the games, and you have the means to do so already, then there isn't any real benefit. But it is just a flippin' sweet console. Probably my favorite redesign of any system, so sleek. Also, it saves a ton of space, being like 1/4 the size of a Sega CD.

I don't recall hearing about any specific age-related problems that they all get sooner or later. But when there are problems, I understand it to be one of the worst to work on. I've luckily not had any problems with mine, but given everything that's crammed in there, it makes sense that it would be a pain to open up.