i dont believe in the "cloud", really.

the way you ask your question, it could as well be "what's the difference between maemo and windows" - you know, if everythings in the cloud, why bother?

i asked this community for help a while ago on an android vs. maemo presentation i had at the office. maybe you get some answers in this old thread:
http://talk.maemo.org/showthread.php?t=27416