Quote Originally Posted by cherinyc
I am surprised that no one has mentioned the Crank Brothers Smarty's. My LBS guy put them on my new (my first) road bike - as an introduction to clipless pedals. Once I got the feeling down they're pretty easy to get in and out of. I fell over once last week, but on the way down, while panicking, my foot came unclipped without me breaking an ankle or anything.
They look just like the Candies but are about $40-$50 cheaper.
The Smarties and the MXRs are good pedals for beginners. They're lightweight, less expensive, and I believe have the same clipping mechanism. The difference comes with the bearings and serviceability. I could definitely feel a difference in smoothness when I rotated the pedal with my hand (didn't try but probably couldn't tell with my foot). Also, the higher end pedals can be overhauled, the Smarties and MXRs can not, once they're operating poorly, it's time to throw them away. They are definitely great pedals though to try going clipless with, you don't need to invest $100 for a reliable pedal. Once you fall in love, then you can upgrade!