Aren't we contradicting our self here? First you say you were expecting something different then you point out the difference.
It's a reboot-meaning a fresh start. It's a reboot of the Spider-Man movies not the comics. It is a fresh start, they discarded the continuity/storylines of film version of Spider-Man and opted to follow as close the comics. Sure, the previous Spider-Man movies were based from the comics but they were also created as standalone films that didn't require one to read the comics to understand the movie.
I think the comic lovers would appreciate it. The movie is the closest thing to the comics compared to the other 3.
Peter Parker's romantic life has always played a big part of the comics.
Secondly, it is still business. Sony's target is to make sales. They are aiming for more earnings
that is why they are aiming for the female market. Sony assumes the comicbook fanboys would surely watch the movie.
I don't know if you've read the article on Peter Parker being a nerd and they said that definition of a nerd has changed. Nerds in the '60s is different to today's nerds.
I think the filmmakers were trying to illustrate that spider sense can fail. We both know that Peter Parker can choose to ignore spider sense and that he can also be distracted.
Lastly, I wonder if we watched the same
The Amazing Spider-Man movie.