Ringing statement of the obvious.....another year where us sportbike aficionados wont' have one second to be bored. All of these monsters (along with last year's winner, the GSXR1000) are so damned good that it will be a matter of what features, what styling, and what dealer appeals to you most. Though time (and the required shootouts) will tell, I wouldn't be surprised if my current steed ('03 Gixxer Thou) finishes last or close to the bottom of the food chain. Doesn't matter one iota to me. Any of these bikes are incredible winners. The far bigger question is whether rider abilities and improvements are any where near keeping the pace of this hi-tech machinery. History shows that the bikes get better, the riders don't, and lap times stay the same (not including bonafide roadracers).
As far as the bikes go, from what I've read so far, the Honda applies power to the ground better and sooner, is deceiving in it's ability to generate great speed, and has great brakes. The Kawi steers the quickest and really screams, has great brakes, but may be a little slap happy. The Yammie has a good balance of quick steering and a screaming top end, and the Gixxer may still have the most power in the low & mid range, steering reasonably quickly with great stability. I HATE IT when people write into forums and tell us how a bike works before anyone has ridden the thing (which I sort of just did). Conjecture means absolutely nothing. I read everything I can get my hands on, but then form my own opinion. I have found some of the moto press to be very accurate (according to my needs) and others to be way off base. So, read what you need, but form your own opinions, buy according to what will work best for you, and will provide you with the biggest grin factor. Even the last place bike (I'd guess the Gixxer) is so incredibly good, we all win. The best investment we can make is constantly trying to improve our riding skills to appreciate these incredible beasts even more. From what I've read so far, the neatest newest sportbike for having a ball on the street is the GSXR600 (along with the rest of it's 600cc brethren). For the old & lazy, such as myself, there is something thoroughly intoxicating about have real power at 4000 RPM. Long live the Big Dogs! Cheers, Jack