I thought exactly the same as you did, in 2012... And I thought exactly like you did, in early 2017... But then, one day I wanted to SEND $560 PAYMENT to China, and THAT is when I saw the light. It cost much more to send by Western Union, or Bank wire, than to send by Bitcoin.
And then I thought to myself "if they accept Bitcoin as payment in China, who am I to say that Bitcoin has no value?"
So... now I am convinced that crypto currency is not a pyramid scheme, or a bubble. It definitely is useful.