I've got a 2.5 TS in my drivway. A couple of points:
1. The AWD gives you incredible control. You can use it to push the car through turns using the throttle, and the cars handling in the snow is unmatched by any FWD/RWD car. There is no comparison here. You can drive the thing in any weather with no worries at all.
2. 165 hp is the bare minimum for a car like this. While torquey and peppy, if you lay on the throttle, not much happens. The boxer is not a revver, but has plenty of low end grunt - as was pointed out earlier, it gets V6 mileage. This and the apparent lack of power are due to the cars rather hefty 3100 lb curb weight and the power scarfing AWD driveline.
3. The interior. Well, let's face it, the 2.5 TS is the absolute cheapest Subaru you can buy and is treated as such. It's well put together and the controls are intuitive and it's not ugly to say the least - especially when compared to it's American entry level counterparts. It does not, however, hold a candle to the Mazda3. No contest here.
4. The exterior. Well, to me this is a matter of opinion. I really like the look of the TS and the 3, that's why I own a TS and I'll be buying a 3 to sit next to it in the driveway. There are only 4 or 5 colors available, which sucks, and the Pacifica Blue is one of the worst colors I've ever seen on a car. The green is very nice (what I got), but in CT at least, it seems 90% of the cars on the lots are San Remo Red, so I hope you like red.
5. One more thing - the radio is not impressive. For some reason the tweeters are a $100 DIO so you're stuck with 4 door speakers. This car is my wife's and she doesn't care, but if you do I would definately pick up the tweeters - I believe there is also a DIO subwoofer for under the seat. No idea about the cost or if it actually sounds good.
My 2.5 TS with auto had an MSRP of $19,245, I knocked almost a grand off that by negotiating with the dealer. I think the Mazda3 wins in value though. MSRP for a comparably equipped Mazda3 with alloy wheels (the TS has steel wheels) would be $17,825.
Some things to think about...