Nice overview. I have to disagree with the assessment of Eclipse though. Under one app you can build and debug Java, Python, Ruby, HTML, Javascript, and Air app

Nice overview. I have to disagree with the assessment of Eclipse though. Under one app you can build and debug Java, Python, Ruby, HTML, Javascript, and Air apps. Once you get used to the workflow, it's incredibly productive. As for the emulator, unless you want to invest in a large set of devices, it's the only way to test against different screen sizes and device profiles. Even though it's nice to have a device for debugging, you'll need to make peace with the emulator to make sure your app doesn't go all wonky on devices other than your exact model.