Agreed. When nano unexpectedly pops up, I'm confused, have no idea how to do anything, or even how to exit, but I'm a power-nerd and I can quickly figure it out. When someone who's never used Vi unexpectedly finds themselves in it, they're far worse off. I know nano is trivial to learn, but I run into it so rarely that I haven't bothered. There's enough help on-screen for me to escape and that's as far as I've gotten.
Micro[1] would be a better choice. Has normal keybindings, works more or less as you'd expect.