Yeah well, I haven't plugged in for likely a hundred gigs, other than electric bass. Condenser mics seem to do the job for me, but what the hell, I sit on my ass and don't move much. Nonetheless, I've heard some pleasing pickups, though I'd not characterize them as convincingly acoustic, just pleasing. I can tell the difference and I prefer mics, though I'm not exactly playing Maple Leaf Gardens, just small to medium sized rooms.
I gig with the same guitars I play at home and they were all bought for their unamplified sound, the same sound I want to hear when gigging, and the only way for me to get that is with mics.
I like to watch some of these morning news and public affairs TV programs once in a while and I often hear (sorry, stereo TV) crappy plugged in sound when good sound is only a mic away. By the way, anyone Ontarioans catch Das Macht Show on CityTV last week? They sounded good.