I have experienced a few 700's and one tikka and I think they are both great. My guess is the average tikka is likely to shoot a bit better out of the box and be less picky with ammo/load types, but the euro styling, mag, action length, plastic, and ejection port size bother some. The 700 is what most are used to. You may have to add the cost of a Timney onto the 700, while the tikka had a great stock trigger.
At the same price, I would have a tough time choosing but would likely go for the 700 MR. I got a T3 lite with Burris for $450 with a $150 rebate on top of that and at that price had NO trouble choosing. I always wanted a 700 MR and have never gotten around to picking one up, the tikka is nice and light and does the same thing, so I am really happy with it for now.
