Ever driven them both, even sat in them both. The Cee'd is the definition of cheap and bland in both regards whereas the Focus is a fantastic car to drive and feels much better quality inside. I had a Cee'd for a couple of weeks while my Focus was being repaired and the contrast in driving experience and quality feel was huge. Sure the Cee'd doesn't actually look bad, from the outside, but it's cheap and tinny, the fact it doesn't have any performance what-so-ever doesn't help, but that's not what killed the car. I've had slow cars before and loved them, it's just a very dull car to be behind the wheel of.
I have sat inside them both, though I'll admit to not having driven either. Plastic is plastic at the end of the day, I don't care what it feels like as long as it's screwed together half-decently. I prefer the look of the Kia's interior, and it does have a more youthful feel to it - the Focus is very grown-up and mature. That's what some people want (especially family buyers) but it's not something that concerns me.
I know the Focus is the better car, probably the best in it's class, but I have no incentive to even go near one because it doesn't remotely interest me. And this is coming from someone who is a big fan of most Fords. In the Focus class I'd rather have an Astra/Leon/Civic/Megane/Bravo. The only car more forgettable than the Focus is the Peugeot 308, which I literally forget exists sometimes.
Bear in mind I'm also speaking from the perspective of whom virtually any modern car is a trade-up in terms of quality, comfort, quietness, performance etc. I own a bottom of the range, ten year old Fiesta. A new car doesn't have to try that hard to impress me, so I can be swayed by more subjective and irrational factors. Which is why I prefer the C'eed - and in particular, the Pro_c'eed, which also has pretty bad visibility to add to the mix.
It's also why I like the Soul. I know it'll still be a bit cheap and cheerful, but it looks great, it'll probably be fairly practical, reasonable fun to drive, and doubtless in the States there'll be plenty of tuning parts, stereo kits and so-on that will appeal it to younger drivers.
Re: Nissan Cube - If I recall correctly they are briging that to the States soon - either a facelifted one or a new model that happens to look similar. Can't find the original article with pictures of the new one but
here's a link to a story about there now being a US Cube website.