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The i3, even with the REx, is not, nor was it intended to be a general purpose ICE replacement. The Volt is. They therefore have different design goals. The i3 is smaller, but taller, so easier access and visibility, shorter turning radius, shorter to fit in places the Volt can't. You can take the Volt on a long distance tour, the gas tank is sufficient so you do not have to stop that often, and the engine/generator are sized to maintain the motive power the whole time, but unless you could plug it in regularly, there are a lot of other cars that get better mileage. The REx is not that big, the gas tank is not that big, and while it can maintain under some circumstances, they intentionally didn't make it bigger because the design goals didn't suggest it. Think of the REx on the i3 as more of a comfort factor in case your journey takes an unexpected turn, and you cannot recharge along the way. Personally, if it needed to be used on a daily commute, I'd pick a different vehicle.
IF those design goals meet your needs, then the i3 may be a good match for you. If they do not, then pick something else.
My guess is that, similar to the i8, BMW will have some other hybrid designs in the works that may address those other needs. With today's battery tech, I don't think they'll go towards Tesla's design parameters, but only time will tell. There are experimental batteries that can hold more and can be recharged faster, but it will be awhile before they make it to production. Same thing about fuel cells. But, just like building a network of charging stations (much easier to do than hydrogen), hydrogen is MUCH harder to find, and harder to distribute, making a hydrogen fuel cell much less viable. Now, there are ways to crack stuff like gasoline to release hydrogen, but then you have the carbon to get rid of...that's not currently very good use of that material, or that easy to do in a vehicle. You could make your own hydrogen as long as you have water and power, but safely storing it at home may be an issue. The high pressure pump required to make storage practical, is also a big energy user, so while using hydrogen is pretty efficient, the whole fuel cycle isn't.
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