Why don’t you just stop? You’re wrong. End of story. En fait and au fait are pronounced differently. One is ‘fet’ and one is ‘fay’. As just one of thousands of examples. Admit defeat.
Because most people need the sounds between seeing words and understanding them.
One more example: content ./. comptent.
I pronounce both “en fait” and “au fait” as “fet” but others don’t you’re right!
Depends what “content” you’re talking about. If it’s the adjective or the verb “conter”.
Encore mieux. Je suis content qu’elles content une histoire.
Pronunciation depends on the grammatical contents. This does not happen with phonetic languages.
After enough exposure with listening to French, you begin to be able to figure out how the words are pronounced, even if they are foreign words in French. This has at least been what I have found when I was learning French intensively when I first started.
English is my native, and it is by far harder to figure out how to pronounce words than it is in French.
Metropolitan French is the standardized pronunciation of the language which is what they teach in school and in French phonetic classes where I live.
Accent, however, plays a huge factor in the way French is pronounced, and it can vastly change even in just France alone.
Thus as you stated in b.) I heard people pronounce “ai” 2 or 3 different ways, but technically only 1 is correct in Metropolitan French.
I do believe French spelling does have patterns in pronunciation, but isn’t fully phonetic due to irregularites.
The pronounciation by itself is not really difficult but the quick pace of speach can prevent people who are not used to the language from earing where a world finishes and the other starts. That could make French difficult to understand…
‘technically’. That’s like saying only Queen’s English is ‘correct’ in England. Nonsense.
That is interesting! I find it completely the opposite! I find a lot of the words are very similar to English so I can actually get quite a good vague understanding of basic texts but I really struggle to follow spoken French at all. I think they are speaking so fast and I’m sorry to say this, I think they sound like they are all mumbling! (I know they aren’t I obviously need more practice 
). With German on the other hand, my reading and listening ability seem to grow at the same time. So my experience of learning French at the moment feels a bit disjointed and quite odd!
You know, I have experienced the same thing with English and you’re absolutely right… we need more practice. When I’m able to fully understand english or american series I will say: well I’m now fluent in this language
I think our languages just have such different pronunciation. I can’t wait to be able to watch French TV and understand it!
the day i can watch french films without the french subtitles will make me so happy