I picked up one of the new straight ones when they only had the 3/8 out. I've had the grey ones for a while and like them. I think the grey ones are the cheapest ratchets you can find locally anywhere and I've spoken to techs at work who really think they're great, the handles are comfortable, they won't draw heat out of your hands in the winter, and they seem to be as robust as any other offering. I've had cheap ratchets fail, not even strip teeth but just lose consistent pawl lock up and it's frustrating enough.
I tried packing ratchet heads with grease on the grey ones to see if I like, I've since done all my ratchets but it is up to personal taste. When I first opened the grey ones, I noticed surface rust on the steel head that is enclosed by the plastic. Not really an issue as I was about to pack it solid with red grease, but the whole head and shank were probably the same condition. Since it's over-molded, they didn't bother even dipping it in phosphate, but you can't pull it out without destroying it so no reason to worry. It's a good ratchet to try out greasing if you're on the fence because of the price, but in the end it'll probably never affect function unless you let it accumulate moisture, in which case any tool would suffer.
I think the new style is pretty much the same internally but the handle is prettier. As far as function, though, I honestly like the grey ones better. The fat, shaped handle spreads pressure across your palm better and the handle offset is useful. The functional advantage of the new style is increased leverage from a longer arm but you'd need a lot of research to tell if it makes enough of a difference. If I need more leverage, I go for a ratcheting breaker bar (also from HF).
