I'd have to agree with you, I don't really care for knitting with bamboo needles either but because they seem to pick up dirt and oils from my hands much easier. Jackie told me the square ones knit very nice stitches but at first they are a little rough on your hands.
Addi of any sort are really nice! I would have gone with addi except my local LYS aren't official distributors. Here in Canada, many of the US company's don't want to deal with our exchanges. Not sure why but I have my suspicions. I purchased the Chiaogoo through Amazon. Thought I was being smart and saving a few dollars..blah. I had to hound US Chiaogoo to deal with me because the person I purchased through ISN'T actually a registered distributor. One needle had a burr that I couldn't do anything with. But, in the end they dealt with me and replaced the needle.
You're very right...Customer Service matters! Thanks so much for taking the time to weigh in on this. I loved your info.