The DMT sharpeners are very unlikely to damage your blade. You may end up with a blunt edge but no real damage when you keep watching the results of your effort. I can recommend those sharpeners. As others pointed out you just need some practice and if possible a demonstration by a skilled person.
The second model has the disadvantage of a fixed angle which is not good for every use. They also don´t make a knife as sharp as the DMT in skilled hands. Ceramic sticks may break if you drop them. This is why I don´t like the sharpeners with those sticks.
It´s a common misconception that the steel for kitchen knives is for sharpening. Usually kitchen knives are made of pretty soft steel. When the edge bends it´s straightened with the steel. This will only work if you do it frequently and it will not work if the edge is already worn. A high quality knife doesn´t get its edge bend so the steel wont do any good here. The sharpeners which scrape material from the edge (like the Sterling) should not be used for high quality kinfes either.