In my transition from the Nokia Internet Tablets to Android-powered devices, I haven't experienced any of the problems reported by the OP. This might be due to the fact I started with some well-written guides to the available Android software, instead of cluelessly searching on the play store.
It's true that the latter doesn't highlight the best applications; the advantage of Maemo, in this, comes from these wonderful forums, which I still can't refrain from browsing, where there's a well-working cooperation between devs, users and lurkers :-)

If the OP wishes to share the kind of applications he needs (and doesn't find), I'll be happy to report here well-functioning examples of them, if I have any direct experience. No fart apps allowed ;-)