We chose cursor.value and cursor.onChange to line up directly with react's value/onChange convention. But, we are considering a nomenclanture change and we will probably expose all the react.addons.update - set, merge, push etc. Knowing when to choose value vs pendingValue() is essential complexity, but cursors make it a mechanical decision - in a lifecycle method? use `value`, in an event handler? use `pendingValue()`.

Email me if you want to talk about it.