Well, with the traditional kind of toe clips, you have to reach down with your hand and release straps, to get out of the cages. To me, that's a lot more coordination than twisting my foot out of a cleat! I know that some people use the cages without the straps, but I am not sure if this works well.
Have you thought about getting Power Grips? They are basically a velcro strap that you slide your foot into. You get out of the strap by using the same motion as you would use in clipless pedals. My friend, who said she would never use clipless, got these, and within 6 months had clipless pedals. It was a good intermediate step.