I didn't really have any issue with the movement beforehand, but I do like it more now. I'm not sure if I'd call it smoother than before, just a general feeling of better. I felt like I moved my ships more now, because I could do things like make a minor correction in my angle to hit an enemy, attack, and then move to a better spot after attacking. Before I tended to position my ships early on and only really move them for better aiming or if I needed to get closer a particular ship for a nearest ally ability.
I don't think you need to make the early card choices easier. It was a tough choice to make, but it also help it feel like my choices mattered. The progression felt decent. The first mission I had to do a lot more thinking and planning for what to get and whether I should heal than the others, but that felt balanced out by the difficulty of each of the missions. By the last mission, I didn't worry about healing my ships between fights, because I had most of my favorite cards by that point though I didn't have every card at that point.
I didn't have enough credits to buy a ship after 2 failed runs on Battle Mode, though the first one I lost fairly early and the second one was at fight number 6, so it was probably due to when I lost. I don't mind the ships being expensive, as it gives me something to work towards.