Should I max out DPS, or damage? I like arcane orb.
Will the amount of damage enemies get depend on damage or dps?
Does slow but big damage weapon better than fast and low damage weapon if DPS is the same?
Note: My understanding is that I agree with all the answer. Pick high damage weapon.
However, according to http://massively.joystiq.com/2012/06/16/five-diablo-iii-wizard-myths-tested-and-debunked/, only blizzard is not affected by attack speed. In fact, ias (improved attack speed) works so well, that blizzard (the company, not the skill) decide to nerf it.
The article also said that equipping ias (improved attack speed) will increase hydra damage. It seems that dps is the one that's used instead of "damage".
Best Answer
It really depends on what your doing, and having the right weapon for the right job.
Hard hitting, slow weapons are applicable for spells which are not dependent on attack speed. This is a good amount of the Wizard's abilities. Such popular abilities include (but not limited to)
These abilities benefit from harder hitting weapons with the only downside being a slow unfront cast speed. The cast speed just means how fast you can start running (or casting) again after firing the spell. In Inferno difficulties this is actually quite important if you plan on kiting.
Quick weapons are applicable for spells which you cast a lot of in a short amount of time, and benefit from getting quantity over quality. The popular abilities include (but not limited to)
Signature abilities are great for getting your arcane power back up in order to cast the hard hitters again. As mentioned previously, the faster casting speed is also vital in being able to kite, even with the arcane guzzling abilities.
Basically, pick the right tool for the right job (or what goes with the build you want).
(To directly answer your question, all spells do their damage based on your weapon damage (plus modifiers), not the weapon's listed DPS).