I prefer cobs, they always give me a great smoke, I don't have to worry about ghosting as much and in my experience they don't need to rest as long as briars. They're great value for money as well.

I’ll pick the third choice, meerschaum. Cool, dry smoke, no flavor from the material, no resting needed, never burns out/lasts forever unless broken by force. 

But back to your question, cobs are great! For me they are especially wonderful with burleys and Latakia blends, plus provide a cooler smoke than briar. That being said, I think every type of pipe has its place and time. Thinking about this has had me decide to have a nice nostalgic smoke in a cob. 

I should have added meerschaum as an option. I got my first as a gift from my girlfriend recently and am realy enjoying it. 

There can be a fourth, porcelain. I was gifted an "Old Mokum" porcelain pipe many years ago. This pipe was made in Holland. I have never smoked it because it seems very hard to clean. There is a chamber just bellow the bowl.

And about the poll. Briars. I haven´t smoked anything else, but I ordered a cob to try.

It really depends on the blend. 
Burley blends tend to taste best in a cob. 
When it comes to briars, the size and shape of the bowl often comes into play. 
For example, I've got two ROPP Apple briars that favour VaPers like Formers Birdseye Flake and OGS and Balkan blends like Balkan Sobranie Match. 
To answer your question; I like my briar and cob pipes and do not favour one over the other generally speaking. 

I'm a big fan of cob. 
There is no equal for me.

We all know about briar and their quality but when smoking cobs i feel like i can take the max of the blends what sometimes i don't feel with briar pipes.

The only time i feel briar is better is when smoking straight virginias, apart from that, i´ll go for cobs always as possible.

By the way, i just ordered 3 new cobs for my collection. A Missouri Pride Bent , Let Freedom Ring Rob Roy Bent and Washington 5th Avenue Bent.

Briar hands down. But corn cobs are damn fine smoking tools and super reliable. When below 6•C I damn sure dont smoke Briar outside. Wet smoke and bowl might not take the temperature extremes well! A cob just works like a charm even at freezing temperatures. They hold a Special place in my Heart.

in a relaxed environment briar to me just gives a better experience, sort of snobbish.

Cobs are good for the reasons already stated. However, I find their bowls rather small, unless you enjoy the taste of charred wood!

Cobs have their time and place. But, for me, meerschaum and briars have more options and greater flexibility - there are more designs, etc..

I love my cobs but to pick only 1, it has to be briar. I love the way the wood looks and feels. If I ever get enough to dedicate to each blend I will love them even more.

No room to speak on the topic ☺️…I have yet to try a cob, (or meerschaum or calabash for that matter). So… Briar by default (and limited experience).

For me, the cheapest cobs anyway, are inexpensive, lightweight, small and easy to carry around in my pocket. I almost think of them as disposable pipes. I always have a handful of them lying around my house.

A person would be surprised how often a curious guest might want to try some pipe tobacco. At which time I'll give them a fresh cob. I find it's usually women who are cigarette smokers that are most often curious and will actually give pipe tobacco a try.

Another thing I'll use cobs for is if I want to taste-sample a new tobacco in a fresh pipe.

...That's my two cents on the subject 😉 

Being new, I’ve still got my first pipe - a Missouri cob - and another to match.  I now have three Briars. 

To me, the cobs always leave me with a great experience while the briars can take more practice. 

Mostly, though, the amount of time I have to enjoy a pipe peacefully is the deciding factor. For a quicker smoke, I reach for the cobs.  If I have time for a book and a drink, I’ll pick the briar for it’s bigger portion. 

I'd already had a few cobs but I found a boxful of very old but great condition used cobs a few weeks ago, 17 of various brands. Got them for $2 each since the seller was tired of them laying around. I enjoy sprucing and lighting them up.

I enjoy my briars a lot but a growing part of me enjoys cobs more. 

No love for clay pipes?

I have briars, cobs, and a clay or two, and they all have their place. For trying new blends I like a clay first, because it’s clean and allows you to focus on the tobacco itself. They don’t ghost and they develop a lovely patina - and if you want you can just bake them clean. Sure, they’re fragile, but they’re just as inexpensive as a cob and easy to replace.

Cobs are great knock around pipes and I always have one in my go bag. Easy to clean and don’t ghost. Cheap as chips as well.

Briars are classy and big and delightful to hold. They look great and can be heirlooms. I love estate pipes and always keep an eye out for interesting shapes.

So I guess I am saying I like them all!

If I had to choose one material and just that material for all my pipes, it would be briar, but I would be awfully sad. I like them all, and it's the wealth of options to suit the preference of the moment that lends to my overall appreciation for pipe smoking.