I’ve got zero experience with the .40, but I have fired a CW9 and own a PPS9. I considered the CW9 before choosing the PPS. Both IMHO are well made, I put probably 100 rounds through the CW9 (Friends) and now have about 1200 through my PPS9.
They’re about the same size, the PPS is slightly larger and CW9 is lighter by about 4oz. The trigger on the CW9 is very smooth, but with slightly longer pull and with a longer reset than the PPS. Recoil is about the same, or if there is a difference I can’t really tell.
It’s a strictly personal thing, but I like the PPS better. Once the trigger smooths (about 200 rds, and some lube) out its pretty good, with a pretty short reset. It’s a quick shooting gun, maybe the extra weight helps, but I seem to shoot it better and faster than the CW9. To me it feels and shoots more like a service pistol than a small CCW gun and to me it points very well. I also like the sights on the PPS more, large dots, with plenty of daylight on the sides of the front blade.
One pro and con for the PPS are the magazines. Great design, I like how the different capacities/lengths change how the gun feels and conceals. It literally goes from a sub-compact with the 6 round to a thin service pistol with the 8 round. It becomes a thin compact single stack with the capacity of my SIG P6 just by swapping mags. The con is the cost, they’re expensive, but how many you need for a CCW pistol is the question. I’ve got 4 now, and will probably buy a couple more.
Chuck