One other difference b/w the Yoder and the Mak is burn pot positioning. The Yoder is set up with the burn pot on one side and the smoke stack on the other. I assume the intention is to have smoke flow from one end to the other as on a traditional offset stickburner.
As someone who has used stickburners for 25-30 years I ordinarily would prefer that setup. But pellets don't produce near the volume of smoke as a stickburner. The Mak 1-star is set up with the burn pot in the center and there is no stack; rather, the smoke exits thru louvers in the back of the smoker at hinge level. I have no empirical evidence for this, but from observing the smoke when I lift the lid, I have concluded IMHO this setup maximizes the smokiness inside the smoker, particularly at lower temp's, and helps counteract the pellets' lower smoke profile.
Nonetheless, I've never heard a Yoder 640 owner complain about lack of smokiness, so, again, I predict you'll be happy with either setup.
