they might have realized that the reason Browning designed the magazine to hold seven rounds was that it wouldn't (reliably) hold eight.
This is one of the things seldom thought about these days, Browning's DEDICATION to reliability. You can call it an obsession, or a dedication, a touchstone or something else, but if you really look at Brownings designs, guns AND ammo, the constant unvarying thing about them is that they WORK.
And, they rarely break or wear out during normal use, and have a deserved reputation for holding up and "delivering" during abnormal use and even under abuse.
Browning actually took a radical departure from his previous practice with the .45 Auto cartridge. Note that the .25, .32, and .38 Auto cases he designed have small rims. "semi rimmed" is the term used. The .45 Auto, does not. Why not?
The story I've always heard is simply because, Browning wasn't convinced a true rimless round would headspace reliably, and he knew a semi-rimmed case would. The .45 Auto was designed well after the earlier rounds and after the 9mm Luger had proved that a rimless round would headspace reliably. So, after the Luger showed the world rimless worked reliably enough, Browning adopted it for the .45 Auto.
By today's standards, Browning's guns are massively overbuilt. They're fairly big and heavy for the job, but they work, and they keep on working.
Now, don't get me wrong, I don't mean to imply that all his guns always work all the time no matter what, that's ridiculous. The 1911 got its reputation for reliability NOT because it never jammed, but because it jammed significantly less often than the other pistols of the day.
The 1911 stayed as first line issue for over 70 years. Browning's .50 cal machine gun will hit 100 years in service before too many more years pass. Same BASIC gun, think about that....Yes other designs have been tried, some even adopted, but none have replaced the M2 yet, and I doubt any will any time soon.
Browning designed rifles pistols shotguns and machine guns are still in production and use in the US and other places around the world. I don't think we could swing a holiday to honor his contribution to our lives and our freedom, but we should, people who have done far less have gotten a stamp, at least...
There are some places you can find to improve some things about some Browning designed guns. But every change isn't necessarily an improvement just because the fellow doing it thinks it is.