I'm okay with it, but I don't really support the idea as I found it fun and enjoyable to explore which items to upgrade.
The way I see it, without the upgrade -- unless you play alts -- Valor Points become just about as relevant as Justice Points. Could be a signal of moving completely away from the VP/JP system and making normal/heroic raiding more relevant through gear since LFR has nullified such raiding to see the content, which is fine.
Still though, I enjoyed the option to upgrade.