No. It was there because Microsoft asked AMD to add them, before canceling the Van Gogh SoC order.

It does make sense given that 7+G2 was rejected by OEMs. Sucks, but it is what it is. Lack of AV1 support does piss me though.

No, they weren’t. Snap 8+G1, 8G2, 8G3 and 7+G2 are just as fantastic, if not better than 865/870. They’re so fast that 865 is basically a mid-range SoC in performance now.