Hi,
My son's high school, where I do a fair amount of volunteer computer work, purchased 30 GW notepads about 3-4 months ago for student use. Don't know the model, but they don't sound quite as nice as the system you are thinking about. Anyway, they have been amazingly robust systems (keep in mind they are pounded-on daily by teenagers). I'm only aware of one failure and that was with the sound/speaker system. The TFT's have done very well.
On the downside, the shell of these notepads seems kinda flimsy to me with a latch that is not particularly ergonomic. (I've seen some IBM notepads that at least appear to be physically more robust.)
WRT to GW support, I really like their online support. Basically, you enter the serial number of the PC and you're directed to web pages that have the latest drivers/FAQs/whatnot for your unit AND tell you about the as-purchased configuration of the PC. (I've heard that Dell also has this serial-number-centric online support, but don't know for sure.)
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In summary, if it was me, I'd strongly consider the GW. My only nit is the seemingly flimsy case/latch. Whatever you get, I'd go for the built-in 802.11b hardware if at all possible; it works great on our school's notepads. (Security note: Wireless vendors appear to ship their stuff with the "barndoor wide open". If you get 802.11a/b/g, make sure you check into this and protect yourself accordingly.)
Whatever brand you choose, you'll prolly hear at least 1-100 horror stories about that particular brand.
Happy Shopping,
Kevin