Readability
Here's another fundamental difference. Objective C is inherently more readable than C++ because method parameters are built into the name of the method. Consider:
// Objective C
[layer addChild:sprite z:1];
// C++
layer->addChild(sprite, 1);
You see the difference in readability?
Objective C is a bit easier to read because the 2nd parameter to the addChild method is clearly a z value. In C++, it's anyone's guess what "1" means.
Modern day Integrated Development Environments (IDEs) like Xcode mitigate the issue when you are writing code because of auto-completion. You start typing addChild and it gives you the parameter types and names. This makes it clear what the parameters are when you are writing the code. However, if you take some time off from the project and come back later, you might be a little perplexed when you glance at that addSprite call and wonder about the second parameter.
You can make C++ more readable by changing up your style a little bit. Like this:
int z = 1;
layer->addChild(sprite, z);