Unless supporting a Windows client is an absolute must, I've found NFS shares to be far preferable. I've experienced quicker speeds, fewer disconnections, and less corruption. The only downside I've encountered is the client hanging if the server goes down, but there are solutions to that.

I will admit I've never done anything beyond simple network shares with NFS, so it's possible that there are use cases (besides involving Windows, by which I also mean Active Directory) is better.