Not to bash anyone or flame them, but i am called in quite a bit with customers asking, "how do we fix this texture that they used a portable on, it dosent look right."
Anyone i come across that uses a hopper always says the same thing, which is what you said. They have no problem.
Well i have no problem spraying out of them either. I do have a problem with getting the right look that i am supposed to out of the hoppers as my pattern is hard to remain consitant, i have to constantly mix up mud over and over again. sometimes the batches are not the same unless i use a measuring cup.
I can think of plenty of reasons to not use my portable. and plenty to use my sprayer.
Here is the only way i will use my portable. I can't reach up 8 stories with my rig. I probably should invest in a drum style machine with a air compressor pump that runs much like my spray rig. Aside from that, it is a big pain in the butt to have to wheel it around from room to room