I've been using CF's pre-shave for 5 months now (along with the rest of their product range), and I really quite like it. For me, the pre-shave makes for a more pleasant shave. And if you apply minimum amounts, your skin does not look freshly oiled for 12 hours afterwards.
I also gave the full AOS product range a whirl, and was rewarded with everything from razor burn to zits. Admittedly, I only tried it for a week, but the experience was less than encouraging. Also, while the CF pre-shave - at least for me - feels very comfortable to the touch and smells of, well, nothing, AOS's felt like glue, smelt horrible, and was generally unpleasant to work with.
Caveat: I only switched to straight shaving from DE's in December, so I may have done something completely wrong, and AOS may have the best products in the world.