I ride both, and like both.
Thruster: (w/ "HD" fuselage, aluminum masts 60cm and 94cm)
- stalls at low boardspeeds like all 'kite' foils
- more sensitive to pitch (leads to breach/nosedive), upset more by water turbulence
+ less roll stability means faster / easier to carve around at speed
+ durable (hit logs, rocks, sandy bottoms a million times, etc)
+ sheds bubbles quickly, surface piercing is tolerable
Impulse (Cloud IX S24): (w/ carbon fuselage, aluminum masts 60cm and 94cm)
- more expensive
- more fragile
- takes a while to shed bubbles after piercing the surface
+ large enough that the stall speed of the foil is basically the planing speed of the board- almost impossible to stall the foil, makes underpowered lightwind riding seem easy
+ streamlined well enough that it doesn't feel slow
+ very stable in pitch and roll, not sensitive to under-surface turbulence
Other wings I've ridden, for comparison: LF Rocket (easy but feels more draggy than Impulse); LF Happy medium-aspect (unstable in just about every way); Airush Core 550cm2 (fun, more stable than LF Happy); Clearwater wooden foil (omg awful, drag, vibration, ugh)
The Impulse is disgustingly easy to ride, and still very fun. Highly recommended for beginners in areas without obstacles.
If durability is a concern, I think the Thruster with a 60cm mast is also great for beginners. I've had new-foiler kiters use mine and make successful progress.
I also found this table helpful when shopping for wings:
hth