With regards to your question on heat pump vs gas, here in central FL, I would go with the heat pump. It works great year round and costs far less to run. I would get the largest heat pump you can find - I think that will be a 140K or 144K unit depending on the manufacturer. The larger units are more efficient, and will heat your pool faster.
I have a Hayward heat pump - no issues to date. Works as expected. If I were replacing now, I would look at the AquaCal HeatWave SuperQuiet Heat Pump 143K BTU. Based on the specs, it's more efficient than either the Hayward or Pentair units and, more importantly, is 10 dB quieter.
Having the heat pump be from the same manufacturer is not as important as the VS pump or salt cell. The automation can only turn it on or off and set it to a given temp.