There is no definition of "true" client/server.
We occasionally get pushed to do a "true this" or "true that."
In my opinion, these statements come off as a little pretentious.
It's a little like: "Jim, that's neat that you're painting. Have you ever thought about becoming a true painter?"
It's great to brain-storm about ways to improve (there are a lot of things we could do better!). But it's important to remember there's seldom a single correct answer.
In some ways, engineering is about weighing a lot of requirements and picking the best compromise. No path will ever meet all requirements perfectly (at least if time, money, opportunity cost, etc. are listed with the other requirements).