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Sequential does not equal to paddle shifter automatically.....for example most motorcycles nowadays shift sequentially, that just means you cannot do 1-3 or 4-2 in one shift, you would have to do 1-2-3 and 4-3-2 to do that. In between each shift you'd still need to match the rev and use the clutch on the downshift. The sequential part can just be some linkage pulley setup to how the gearbox being operates from the driver.
Like the Porsche one that was used in Road Atlanta, the shifting action is sequential now, but everything else is still the same as far as I know, except not they have clutchless-no-lift upshift. The driver still heel-toe and use the clutch on the downshift. As far as this type of the box goes, the gearshift is a little bit faster, but not like Formula 1 fast, the main benefit is you never miss shift a gear. Even the Corvette C5R's sequential box too, it is the same gearbox as the H-pattern one, just the method of shifting have been changed to sequential action....
Now with the SMG or F1-type gearbox, there are no longer any mechanical connection. The paddles are like buttons, they receive a command, and the TCU does the clutch, rev-matching, on the mechanical end via electrohydralic or pneumatic devices. They can be a lot faster because everything now is done by computer, where it can just control the engine to cutoff for a fraction of a second to complete the gearshift, while it'll take longer for human to physically complete the action....
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