Overall, Gels have a tendency to be more flexible rather than strong.
What you want out of your enhancment is toughness (balance of strength and flexibility). Gel tend more toward the flex side and L&P tends more toward the strength side.
Some people (depending on how the bash their nails about) need more strength, others need more flex.
The more flex something has, the easier it is to bend, rip, or tear. The more strength something has, the more brittle it can be. (Think of aluminum versus steel)
Some people who have cracking and breaking with l&p are great with a gel as they can usually absorb more shock (less brittle, more give) so therefore some people mistake them for being 'stronger'. However, for longer lengths and people who do need maximum strength... technically, l&p is the best option. It more depends on the type of cracking and breaking that the client has.
The basic gels are merely ways of combining the L & P in a gel formulation for application and smell reduction purposes, essentially they are just L & P in a different form.
The best gels are easy to distinguish and they have a different science
How many gels do you know that combine L&P technology? I am suprised that you dont agree most of the basic systems out there all use urethane acrylates and glutaraldehyde which have little to do with l&p technology (except for the fact that acrylates and methacrylates are from the acrylic family).
They are the most durable products on a weight for weight basis (think suspension bridge)
Where this information comes from?
They never ever lift if applied correctly.
They perform a natural bond with the nail plate.
Most products should never lift is properly applied (actually, it has more to do with prep than application). However, many will have a greater tendency to lift sooner than others. A good example of this are hydrogen bonding products. I would think if this was a concern, a product that covalently bonds to the nail is a much better optioon than one that gets a hydrogen bond to the nail.
They are as soft/hard as a natural nail because that is what they are supposed to be impersonating.
They are flexible like a natural nail enabling them to be heavy duty due to good engineering. Think of the strength in a suspension bridge!
Funnily, most people wear enhancments because their natural nails suck. Natural nails do not withstand daily wear and tear at longer lengths like enhancments do. Remember that too much flex can be a really bad thing too as it will not withstand force (think of a rubber band). Find the baalnce of strength and flex that is right for your client.
They will be totally tanslucent like a natural nail.
Except for in the case of white, pink, red, etc... in fact, only clear should be... well... translucent.