I started with speedplays and they worked so I stuck with them so I have nothing to compare with, except for toe-clips. But I did get a hotspot a while back in my left foot and found out that the cleat platform had shifted away from the ball of my foot toward my toes. You just have to make sure the cleat screws are on tight every 1K miles or so. And regrease the pedals every 2-3K or so, at least that's what I do.

Once you click in, the cleat + pedal sort of mesh to create a fairly large mashing area.