I've not been to the Vancouver event, but I did attend and speak at the Montreal event in December, and I have to say I liked it! The venue and gang was smaller, so sessions were smaller and more shall I say intimate? It fostered more of a conversational-style than presentations you'll find at MIX. The speaker list isn't up yet, but they plan on 136 sessions and if you look at the list of speakers that talked in Montreal, you'll get an idea. 17 are Silverlight! If you want a reason to plan a vacation...