Honestly, I much prefer systemd timers over cron. They work just like systemd units and shed all the odd special cases that cron accumulated over the years. They’re pretty well defined in how they behave in face of systems being down while a job was supposed to run (more a desktop thing, but relevant for some server cases as well). It makes sense to use the same config mechanism.

Still, systemd timers are exposed to the usual selection pressures: systemd the init does not rely on systemd timers. They’re a convenient addon that integrates well. But anything more convenient could replace them with no problem (as evidenced by cron still working on systemd enabled systems)