the other day at VW, some dude was complaining to his buddy about the gri-gris and how they are anchored to the ground instead of to the belayer. he was crying about how it isn't realistic to 'real' climbing.
my first thought was that the gym isn't there to simulate real belaying or to teach noobs how to use a gri gri. the gym is for pulling on plastic and working moves/gaining strength.
my second thought, as he was pointing out to his bud that some routes are all the same color holds while others are the same color tape... yet he had no problem w/ that being 'not realistic to the outdoors'
the gym and their respective belay devices are what they are. you can't go AND complain. that's like complaining about your gas bill and driving an SUV... or just driving at all.
'climbing' in a gym is like 'hiking' on a treadmill. it's got it's roll, you should expect nothing more or less.