There is a way to give Unitrack a kinda pseudo-easement going into and coming out of curves . . .
Suppose you want a curve with a 19" N-SCALE radius (approx 35" equivalent HO scale radius). You can begin and end the curve using one or more 28.25" N-SCALE radius (approx 52" equivalent HO scale radius) pieces.
Both the 19" and 28.25" radius curves would qualify as kinda like a broad radius curve in the N SCALE world.
Flextrack does allow you to do larger more free-flowing curves, but it also allows you to lay out inaccurate curves of varying radius, sometimes causing derailments because a section of the curve is sharper than you intended.
Unitrack is nice, my locomotives and rolling stock like it too. But i agree, there is a “uniform” or almost “toy train” look to it. I like the more “organic” look you can get from flex track, or you know, laying your own. But I like my unitrack, it is almost flawless.
As it happens my latest Train World order came with the new Kato HO/N Unitrack catalogue. 22 pages of N scale track - single pieces, double track, turnouts, bridges, straight and curved viaducts, tram/streetcar trackage (Unitram) etc. N scale Unitrack largest curve pieces are 718mm or about 28-1/4" radius, so I’d think that would be plenty broad for N scale cosmetic curves.
As to appearance, I’ll say again, it depends on how you use it. If you take flextrack and nail it to cork roadbed and don’t do anything else, it’s not going to look very realistic. You need to paint the ties and rail, add ballast and weathering. Same with Unitrack. If you paint the ties (especially if you use two or three colors) and the rails, add ballast to the outside, give it a wash of alcohol-water-black paint (or India ink), it looks a lot more realistic.
Outside of the unitrack, what Nscale track and turnouts are the most reliable?