We had a chance to visit the CN Tower because we had done the Edgewalk and it was included in our ticket. In my opinion, I think the Edgewalk was a much better, unobstructed, view of the city. The CN Tower sky pod had too many dirty windows on it. You could not get a great picture from up there. Plus, there came a point where it was just too crowded. What was even more hilarious was that there was a person who was eating her salad and placed it on the railing in the observation area. If the salad had dropped, then the entire window in that area would have been dirty and the view of the city from that point would have been ruined. They should not allow food in this area.
The observation deck allowed for a view of the city--where you are exposed to the wind and other elements, but again, it was obstructed with gates. The inside of the observation deck was very informative with the history of the tower written on the walls.
Although the views were obstructed, it is still a good cheaper version to see the city. Definitely something to do and check off the bucket list.