even compared to other period cameras such as the X700 Minolta

the Nikon FE(2), Pentax MEsuper and Olympus OM-2. Again, compared to the other manufacturers the film advance feels like its full of sand. Loud. They're loud, which translates into vibration, something you do not want, especially for macro work. Moving on, they do NOT have OTF (Off The Film) metering, consequently they were furnished with a ridiculous plastic slide that supposedly was to be kept on the flash shoe as a cover that was to be fitted over the viewfinder when taking pictures with your eye away from the viewfinder to avoid exposure errors. They are totally battery dependent, which can be a problem because they use a relatively rare battery instead of the industry standard LR44/MS76.

Finally let's look at the auto exposure system. Its no surprise they are the ONLY company and ONLY camera to use Shutter Priority as the only available automatic exposure mode. Every other manufacturer uses Aperture Priority on their comparable cameras. The simple reason for this is Aperture Priority is more intuitive and arguably faster with the adjustment ring adjacent to the focus ring and falling naturally under your fingers! Oh, and let's not forget the Canon Squeak/Cough/Wheeze that signals a dry gear train and immanent failure. This will happen decades before such things as Pentax Spotmatics will give up the ghost.

In summary, did they sell more units than the competition? Absolutely. Their advertising was the best in print, TV and radio. Do they take good pictures? Yes, as good as the person behind the camera is capable of doing. Will one serve the purpose be it for nostalgia or photography class that mandates a camera that can be controlled manually? Absolutely. Cameras are a tool, AE-1's are just a relatively crude tool. There are better choices.