Would Titanic (1997) have been much better without the framing device?

I think Titanic has a lot of good qualities. Sure it's silly at times, but DiCaprio and Winslet are good, and once the ship starts sinking the film becomes so atmospheric. It really feels like being doomed at sea with the characters.

But I have only seen the film 3 times. And every now and then I think I might want to see it again, then I remember the utterly awful framing device. I hate every second of it. It adds nothing. It's just terrible. Old Rose is not interesting, and adds nothing to the scenes with Winslet-Rose. That nerd guy is just terrible. I know Cameron was mainly interested in the project so he could fund an expedition to the wreck. So is the framing device just there to justify having to film the wreck? Because Cameron must have seen how bad it was.

I understand the part of showing that she loved Jack for the rest of her life. That she throws “her” heart back in the sea at the end. And then sees him in the afterlife. I hated it. It's hammering the audience over the head with the story.

So do people disagree with me? Was it needed? Do you think it made the film better for viewers? I know without it the movie might seem less “romantic” because we would never know if she just regarded Jack as an infatuation later in life or her “soulmate”.