Other editors/IDEs you are using with vi-mode plugins also have extra stuff that make them more than just a vi clone, from built in stuff like auto-completion to syntax checking plugins. etc.
Of course, I want those things, that's the whole reason for trying to switch from vi. I just want those things to actually work smoothly and together, rather than being a mess of plugins that sorta work sometimes but have lots of ugly warts and don't play nicely together,