Ok so here are my impressions from watching the dance competition LIVE! (Putting both SP and LP observations here). Hopefully somone is still checking this thread
Davis/White were totally sublime in the free dance. They literally brought me to tears. I totally understand now the story they are trying to tell and I think they tell it perfectly. They really are in a class of their own in this field- faster, sharper, and TRULY emotionally moving. I think the people who say they have no on ice connection are either just haters or have never seen them live. They were awesome. Their first lift in particular is also AMAZING in person- there is this suspended moment where you think she is not going to actually land on his back and then she does and all is well.
I was less totally awed by their short program, but it was good. Clearly, objectively the best that day. Subjectively, though, I catually preferred Chock and Bates SD... which beings me to...
C/B. (Un???)fortunately they are now, definitely, 100% my second favorite USA ice dance team and probably in my top 5 current favorites period. No one could be more shocked by this than me, and it's going to take some getting used to. But yeah, they are breathtaking in person! I always knew she had this 'look at me!' star quality, you can tell even on youtube, but I was totally unprepared for how much they BOTH draw you in in person, and how he definitely has star quality too- he doesn't just showcase her, he also showcases himself.
They are definitely of the 'do it so the nearly blind man in the top row can see it and think OMG THAT WAS AWESOME' school of thought, and for me, it really, REALLY worked. There are also many nice details in their programs, particularly some of her arm movements, that are easy to miss on the tv but impossible to miss in person. I do think they had slightly better speed and edging than either the shibs or H/D, but really, at heart, they are just better performers at this time with these programs.
I also agree with the posts saying their FD music (section 2, one day more) is less overwhelming in person.. partly I think because they are bigger performers than I realized. I'd still change it though. It's weak.
Shibs/HD: I was extremely underwhelmed by both teams in the SP and shocked, shocked by how much I preferred C/B as fully outlined above. From what I saw and felt, I'd have had H/D with a slight lead after the short. Their PCS seemed roughly equal to me and Alex had a visible bobble and I just liked the character of H/D's music better.
In the FD though, they both were very, very good and I was very very sad knowing one could not make it to Sochi. THat said, I think the Shibs were the deserved 3rd place finishers. They really perform the heck out of the Michael Jackson and in the free I think they did have better speed than H/D. It is hard to say though- as Mrs. P said above I don't think the slow music in this instance did H/D any favors.
Aldridge/Eton: VERY VERY pleasantly surprised with these two and their huge improvements. In a way they were the highlight of the dance competition for me because they really blew me away compared to my expectations. I am VERY excited to see what they will do in the next quad!
the lifts! I agree with Mathman that the music became less overpowering at this point. 
Didn't love the program at first sight, but they really had a great performance here, and, when they skate this good, even some of the music cuts don't seem so horrible; I appreciated a lot the energy with which they performed the diagonal step sequence at the end, they were incredibly powerful and passionate even if it was almost the end of the program! And, you can understand how good Shpilband is technically just looking at how beautiful their lifts are and at how easy those twizzles looked!
