Looking for opinions on using the standard WP sidebar vs meta boxes for ‘aside’ type info…

I’ve got a current project in development that has a TON of pages, each with its own unique sidebar content. Rather than clog the WP widget area with hundreds of widget instances, I’ve chosen to use meta boxes for in page sidebar content. It’s easier for the client to find and update, and teaching the nuances of Widget Logic and php conditionals are spared.

This project aside, I’m wondering about the use meta boxes over widget areas (for in-page aside content only) for a few reasons… mainly that it’s easier for a client to find and manage this content, but also because it’s sometimes easier to display meta fields than conditionally display where a widget area is displayed.

So, with that said, what is the WordPress community’s take on this… should the WP widget system be used for aside info always, or are in-page meta boxes kosher?