[@Peter Blaise] Nice summary, Peter. I agree with what you say AND share a very similar preference in tools. I think WinExt shows potential but share your concerns – I especially like to know what something is before I click it, and even more so with programs that can delete files.
Have you looked into FreeCommander XE? It seems to do everything WinExt does and much more (checksums, compare, synchronize, favorite files/folders, favorite tools, save selection lists…). It’s a very useful file explorer as well. I’ve been using it for a while now, rarely touch Windows File Explorer. I don’t use nearly as many additional programs. When something comes up I search the menus and usually find what I need in FreeCommander. And no, I don’t work for them, just appreciate a good product.