Depends on what you want in a bike.
If you cannot find a dealer in your area it may be easier for you to deal with Kona as far as customer service. Santa Cruz provides below average customer service to individuals or bike stores that don't sell alot of bikes for them.
As far as the bike i would think the Heckler would be a better bike all around, plus you can choose different component packages for all Santa Cruz bikes which is very convenient.
Good luck in your decision, i'd say if you find a dealer that carries Santa Cruz i'd say go for the Heckler. If you can't maybe avoiding a possible warranty headache might lean you towards Kona. There are other great trailbikes out there as well Turner 5 spot, Intense 5.5 if you got alot of money to spend, Specialized Enduro if you wanna save a few bucks.