I had a cheap pair of these type of grippers once. The problem I ran into, was that while they made me feel more stable on ice, they also made me feel less stable on bare concrete. Around here, we tend to go from icy patches to bare concrete. That, and it got to be a hassle putting them on and taking them off all the time. I didn't want to put them on inside, so I did it out on the front porch. Walked down the bare concrete stairs feeling less secure. On to the icy driveway where they were good, into the car where I didn't feel good about wearing them (thought it would tear up the accelerator and brake). Then through the icy parking lot to the store, take them off to go inside the store. You get the picture.

If you were in situations where you would be keeping them on for a long time I think they would be good. But I rapidly abandoned them in the suburban environment.

To canoedog's point - I think they would be very good while mucking around in water with a canoe. When I was younger I canoed a lot. And I DO remember those slippery rocks while dragging canoes through shallow areas. Many many slips and trips doing that!