I've spent 20-40 nights each year at various Disney Springs Hotels over that past several years. You do need to include parking fees (all 7 hotels) and resort fees (all but the DoubleTree Suites) when making comparisons. In many cases, you can stay at a nicer hotel for less than a comparable Disney resort. But, you need to compare the pros and cons.
For me, there are two big pros. First, consider the size of the Disney Springs Hotels. For many, the distance between the bus stop and your room is measured in feet, not tenths of a mile. Being one of 250 rooms instead of one of 1,900 rooms can mean you'll get more personalized service. If you have a problem, you can pick up the phone and talk to someone right downstairs.
The second big pro is the fact that 6 of the 7 hotels participate in frequent guest programs. (The B Resort has announced a program, but it has not yet started.) With frequent guest programs, you earn points that can be redeemed to free nights at that hotel or one of another in the chain. It takes time, but I'm sitting on enough points to get at least 5 free nights at virtually any Hilton hotel in the world. If choose a "lesser" brand like Hampton Inn, I can get more than 5 free nights.
As for cons, you do not get any Disney perks like free parking at theme parks, Magic Bands, Disney's Magical Express, or Extra Magic Hours. You also can't get Fast Passes early.
Transportation from the Disney Springs Hotels is a pro and con. Personally, I like that it is scheduled. Shuttles leave every 30 minutes all day long. The shuttles are run by Mears Transportation, which has been a Disney partner for decades. (They run Disney's Magical Express service.) The con is that each shuttle runs to two different parks. It's usually one to Epcot, then Disney's Hollywood Studios and the other to the Transportation and Ticket Center (transfer to monorail/ferry for Magic Kingdom), then Disney's Animal Kingdom.
This is the information provided at check-in:
As for traffic around Disney Springs, I've never seen it to be a problem with the theme park shuttles. They avoid going past Disney Springs. Instead, they use the same roads that Disney Transportation uses for Disney's Saratoga Springs Resort.
Certainly, having to go to the Transportation and Ticket Center is a big con. But, the bus stop locations at the other three parks are not really out of the way. If anything, it's just an extra 30-40 yards than some of the Disney stops. However, they are uncovered, which can be annoying in inclement weather.
Be sure to check the link above that
mjhtvchick posted. It will give you the walking distance from the Marketplace section of Disney Springs to the furthest hotel.
Check the Disney Springs Hotels Marketing Association website for potential discounts:
http://disneyspringshotels.com
Please feel free to ask if you have other questions. There are several people here that routinely stay at the Disney Springs Hotels.