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The Shimano I've loathed in the past have all had hoods that were similar to the SR-R9120 above... huge ugly hoods that were uncomfortable and spewed cables over the space between the bars.
The ST-R9100 was what I saw yesterday when browsing and were the first that made me think that perhaps they have produced a more comfortable and tidy hood.
If I do go Shimano it will be with hydraulic brakes, and if I can be convinced that the batteries on Di2 last long enough to never be an issue (and are OK with cold morning starts bikepacking without losing too significant an amount of capacity) then I'll consider that seriously.
But it's all down to the hoods. I've always been most obsessed with bike fit and comfort, and aside from the geometry and handling this means contact points... saddle, pedals, bars and levers/hoods. The rest I've got under control, but the lack of Campag disc brake really is screwing with settling on a build.
Velocio-
Sounds like you are talking about the old 7800 hoods if they had external cables.
The newer ones are much slimmer and nicer. The di2 ones even more so.
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If you are all for Di2 then its great news because they've minimised the difference between hydro and non-hydro if you look at 9170 and 9150 vs current R785 and 9070.
danb
amey
Don't make your mind just yet ..
ST-R9120 is hydraulic mechanical; more here: https://www.bikerumor.com/2016/08/17/shimano-previews-new-r9100-dura-ace-pricing/