GMAT Strategy

I had a tough time selecting the right prep course for me and am sharing my experience so that other members can benefit from it.
First GMAT attempt - 650 (45Q, 34 V). - October - 2012
After this for about 7 months I didn't think about GMAT but in May 2013, I again started researching from scratch about preparation strategies, schools and prep courses. I had to to do some work in Quants but A LOT in verbal.
After some search I shortlisted e-gmat and Knewton, mostly because of strict budget constraints.
Here are the bullet points of what I experienced:
e-gmat
Pros

• Excellent reviews almost everywhere.
  The only prep course to give 4+ point increase guarantee only on verbal.
  A generous 7 day free trial which will give you an exact feel of their interface and lesson quality.
  Claims to be suited best for non-native speakers.
  A brilliantly simple interface. I watched sessions on a 512kbps connection and it went smoothly.
  The the concepts do get engraved in your mind after just one watching.
  Prompt reply to all your lesson related queries. There is a dedicated question forum link beside each lesson. Now although I didn't get reply for my course related queries, my query within the lesson forum was answered within 24 hrs.
  A lot of course choices, like one can choose just RC course or just CR or just SC and so on.
  They were upfront about their sessions running smoothly at lower internet speeds. This gave me some kind of assurance.

Cons

• No customer support number. Actually I couldn't find even a dedicated e-mail id for customer queries. One has to rely on forums. I posted some queries to Rajat's id and also to an administrator id but didn't get any reply. I did get a reply in a GMAT forum though.
  The money back guarantee seems vague and I don't know why. I mailed them a query regarding it, but didn't get a reply. Although I attribute this just to their carelessness in answering mails.
  I didn't know whether the missed live sessions would be available in some kind of archive. And even if they did, would watching them through archive still void the guarantee.
  Some bugs with the interface. For example, I completed a session from start to end, but the status was "In Progress".
  A couple of times the site wouldn't let me log in even after entering correct credentials. I am sure that I did not enter wrong credentials because I experienced this in two separate accounts.Ultimately I had to reset the password. Didn't face any issues after one reset though.

Knewton
Pros

• The biggest one is the clear-cut 50 point money back guarantee.
  Very economical compared to other courses.
  Excellent customer support. I sent them a mail and got my query resolved within hours. I posted in a forum, and again got my query resolved.
  I also think I saw a contact number somewhere in their website.
  Some people complained that their questions are just modified versions of OG questions. But isn't it actually good? We do want to practice OG like questions right?
  I also browsed through their website forum and found that many refund requests were successfully entertained, if the underlying criteria were met.

Cons

• Mostly average to positive reviews, but very less in number.
  No free trial. While some years ago they did provide this, I don't understand why they stopped it. The only possible explanation could be a lack of confidence in their own course. This is probably the only critical thing because of which I started having second thoughts.
  I also had apprehensions about the smoothness of video sessions because of my slow internet connection.

In the end I went with the Knewton prep course. I don't know whether the choice I made is based on irrational reasoning or not, but I do give some importance to gut feeling. If I do feel that I should have gone some other way, will get back to you later regarding this. Also I thought that if I don't see any improvement in verbal with Knewton, I would definitely go with e-gmat.

Update: I switched to e-gmat course because I thought I needed dedicated attention in Verbal.

Thanks for the reply Rajat.
I have already complimented e-gmat's prompt lesson related query resolution system.
But I really missed a platform to reach out to you for some other queries. Absence of a phone number is fine. But I feel it should have been compensated by at least an e-mail id. Any basic website has a "Contact Us" link somewhere.
Having said that, I want to tell you and other people that I did attend the free session "Define your GMAT strategy" by Rajat and I must say it was really informative and enlightening. I suggest anyone who is having second thoughts about e-gmat, please attend e-gmat's upcoming free session if any, and then make an informed decision. Since I have already put my money on Knewton, I will only enroll in e-gmat course if Knewton turns out to be a disaster.