The difference is: You can still LOOK at the road, you cant if you are staring at a damn phone. relatively objective studies have been performed: talking hands free is NOT NEARLY as obtrusive to your driving as texting in. If you think they are equivalent, you really shouldnt be allowed to drive.... There is no 'good' excuse for texting and driving at the same time, its retarded, unsafe, and just a plain lack of common fucking sense.
Multi-tasking for texting and driving??? Fucking retarded, it is impossible to do that well. If you are looking at your phone, you are NOT looking at where you are going, or what the fuck is going on in front of you, which is the primary function for accidents.