All steel-i agree (all i can thing of is aluminum cans under my feet getting crushed)
hiking crampon- I disagree. There is no such thing as overkill. Those black diamond ones from the first post look great, pretty simple strap mechanism. Look like a lot of parts though, sometimes simplier is better (less things to break/fix).
I would recomend getting mountaineering crampons, just so if you do the winter badge, then start heading north more (like I have) you got sufficient crampons can tackle any mountain east of the Mississippi.
here are mine on sale actually :
http://www.campmor.com/camp-stalker-crampon-flexbar.shtml?source=CI&srccode=cii_23393768&cpncode=31-127590193-2you can get from REI too:
http://www.rei.com/product/798361/camp-usa-stalker-universal-cramponsEven the ones I linked above don't count as "full mountaineering" crampons by climbers because they have the spring bar in the middle. They might not be great for the Himalaya, but for Eastern North America it should be sufficient.They are easy on (less than 30 sec per foot) and easy off. Big spikes, lots of grip for under $100. Just takes some getting used to if you're dry tooling so you don't twist an ankle.
I would go browse around at sites. Like eastern Mountain Sports I know has a big crampon deptartment. REI is good. Campmor has some stuff but they don't have very good return policies (i hardly reccomend the place). See what you can get for 100-150 bucks, then go to the store with your winter gloves and try to put it on and off your boot with a gloved hand without sitting down. (as this is most likely the position that you will be putting them on and off. Sometimes even doing it while hanging onto the side of a cliff)
I mean if you're going to spend $150 bucks on a hiking crampon why not get something with even more bite? You already have the microspikes for slush and less icy conditions.
Also remember that the crampons will dull as you use them, and you're going to file them a bit to keep an edge on it and sometimes get rid of oxidation (with steel ones). Every year you lose a bit of metal from use-wear and filing. If the spike starts out at 3-4cm then you've got a few years before it's a useless nub. So if you get those Hiking crampons (which just look like shorter nub versions of mountaineering crampons) then after 1 or 2 years you sharpen them it'll be like nothing left. The Mountaineering ones you can sharpen for 5-10 years and still have enough tractions. I don't know about the longevity of those hiking ones, especially if you're going to start doing more winter stuff.