I've used all three;
1. Depends. CB pedals has much less resistance when you rotate your heal to unclip but the angel of rotation is more. 15 or 20 degrees vs. ~13 degrees. Clipping into CB Egg beaters are much easier. Stomp and Go. The Shimano pedals & Candy essentially have 2 directions to clip in.
2. No. The cleat rests on the pedal body so your shoe doesnt rest on the pedal bails. If you have a soft sole shoe, you may get a "hot spot" over long rides due to the concentrated presure ove one area. However, this is true for all SPD MTB type pedal with soft sole shoes.
3. Candy are as easy to unclip as Egg Beaters, just isnt' as easy to get in. Candy's are supposed to provide a little bit of a platform to pedal while unclipped. However, the platform is so small that it is vitually useless. If you want a CB pedal witha platform, Acid or Quattro are better.
4. Egg Beater
EDIT: BTW. Because the SPD Multi cleats are designed to release very easily, you may find that these cleats occasionally release unintentionally.
Last edited by Tequila Joe; 09-13-08 at 09:35 AM.