No to test your abilities or knowledge, I find that the easiest way in my opinion is a tiger toothed saw. I have about three saws I use one for the majority of my work, one for finer trees and the other for more brute work. I usually do not break branches when I can easily cut through them. I feel that with the trees I cut most are pines that breaking dead branches can leave jagged stubs which will stab me later as I climb through the tree, or will rip out too deep into the bark of the tree. If the tree is climbable I can usually whip through it in about 20 minutes to a half hour depending on how much dead wood there is.

I do agree that snapping or hitting really dead branches off is a good amount faster than cutting.

Frank