I also started out using Ember.Data and later abandoned it due to similar issues (lack of validations being the biggest), but have stuck with Ember.js itself an

I also started out using Ember.Data and later abandoned it due to similar issues (lack of validations being the biggest), but have stuck with Ember.js itself and am really enjoying it for a basic CRUD app. Entering a route through a user hitting it directly vs. transitioning within the app should not be a problem with Ember.js, everything seems to just work for me at least. I suspect this is an education thing more than anything else.