Yes, I keep mine in the keg without pressure and then simply only turn the gas on a burst to dispense. I’ve got it down pretty well, but the idea is to give enough gas and turn it off, so that it sort of peters out right about the time you’re done. For me, it’s about 2 seconds of a burst when the keg is more than half full. But I always try it without turning on the gas first, just in case there is some residual c02 in there. Ideally you would use an inert gas, but I have a 20pound C02 tank just sitting there so I use it. I keep reds there, at about 63 degrees and the whites are in the basement.
I”d say you’re about right with the comparison. A $75-80 kit will give you 30 bottles of a barefoot/two buck chuck quality wine. One of those $190 kits makes a wine that will rival a $25 bottle. That’s why I do a mix- some cheap everyday drinkers, some excellent kits (like one a year of those), some medium priced kits and then my own wines from chokecherries, blackberries, currants, etc.