[MandoBear]

Yup - definitely no substitute for actually getting out and riding them. Somewhere on this site Bernard (TwoPlugs) posted a review of the new Transalp - in comparison with the old 600. Bernard's a pretty tall guy, and as I recall, he found the position on the new 700 pretty good for him, so it might well be good for you, but a lot depends on how you're proportioned. A tall friend of mine found the position on my 700 a bit tight for him.

As for the differences between the bikes - the 700 has been brought quite a bit up to date compared to the 650, modern clocks, injection, styling... lots of subtle changes. I preferred the new bike, but there are also some killer deals on the 650cc bikes still out there.