Hold on - I will answer your question after I am done removing the 17 bolts needed to clean my DE Filter...



OK, I'm done. Mine works perfectly despite the bolt-heavy construction.
I'm making a point here -- look for ease of cleaning and/or backwashing, as well as estimated time between backwashings. Since the actual filtration is done by the DE, you are right in that they technically work the same, but they can be vastly different in terms of cleaning and maintenance. Someone with a more modern model than mine (Hayward with "fingers" circa 1985) can give you better recommendations than I can.