Ground soft product is terrible, give me QF any day. In air, they're pretty good. Having said that, codeshares a probably slightly preferable with status with outside chance of upgrade vs .05% chance on Qantas, but no seat selection benefits for status on EK.
777 Business felt like the product on AA domestic. Wasn't particularly impressed but obviously better than Y. I wouldn't pay for it.
380 is nice, seats are much better than 777; but I preferred it mostly because of the bar. The bar is such a great idea but was a bit underutilised. Allowing Plats/Golds up from PE/economy to something like this would be a major differentiator if marketed as 'Qantas club in the sky'. Good way to pass time, stretch your legs on long routes.
Are there any kits you can get for Y to give you a mattress cover type thing like business? as in BYO. I might start looking into this.
Also, EK Lounge in Terminal B in Dubai is pretty awful. Only a couple of non-bathroom showers with very long queues. Rest of lounge is rundown. Stark contrast to the nice one in Terminal A.