[marklyn]

I prefer the cloning system better than the backup. Cloning a partition/hard drive basically makes an exact 'image' of the partition/drive. The reason why I prefer it is because if I make various program settings, reg tweaks, install and configure new programs, change skins, etc. (whatever), an image backup (clone) captures all of that and creates a nice file you can use to restore from. I usually keep 3-4 revisions as I make various changes so if I need to 'fall back' on one, I can.
With a regular backup, you typically need to configure it to back up specific files/folders and occasionally some files may have certain attributes (hidden, ROM only, etc.) that can get missed by conventional backup programs.
Cloning software is expensive but more complete and useful for mass deployments (configure one/deploy many). Since our company has this software, it is what I prefer and far superior (in my opinion) but not cost effective for a regular home user.

On a slightly different side note, I still use Pimbackup to backup my *.vol file for those times when something weird happens with my activsync and my contacts get screwed up.