Yes, the device still has a warranty in its original country but you may not be able to deal with them from a different country. In some cases the retailer may pay for the repair in the UK whereas in others they facilitate the repair in the original country under the device's original warranty. I've seen some people get on fine with grey import repairs and some have had total nightmares with them as it can vary hugely between manufacturer and retailer hence I work on the basis of no warranty when weighing up the choices. Some people assume that means never to buy grey imports but it's more the discount has to be worth it and I've now bought several times from E-infinity.
It is 'all that' because you have actual legal protection which makes the CC provider jointly whereas with Paypal you have nothing at all, if you're not happy with Paypal's decision or their handling then tough luck. It's similar to the voluntary chargeback scheme on debit cards which is made out to be equivalent to the protection of a credit card but it's not at all, it's nothing more than a goodwill gesture from the provider and again if you don't get your money back or unhappy with the process, tough luck because you have no comeback on it. It's a crucial distinction many understand nor appreciate how strong Section 75 protection actually is.
Paypal offer many different services and do come under different regulations, they do also function as a direct backend payment processor which can confuse even the banks because this is a standard financial function coming under standard rules and nothing to do with the more familiar Paypal system of making payments. But none of that matters when it comes to a standard Paypal payment, you are still making a payment to Paypal as an agent who then transfer the money to the seller, with no direct relationship between buyer and seller there's no S75 protection so you have to deal with Paypal for any issues.