It has the advantage that the energy it gives off can be be converted directly to electrical energy rather than driving an external heat engine, so despite the greater difficulty of ignition its not obviously a worse choice.

That is incorrect. Recent advances using attosecond lasers enable new tricks and fusion conditions to be realized tabletop. Search also for plasmonics. Using nano antennas and intense lasers to accelerate protons and electrons in a tabletop device (previously required large machines).