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So for the three that you linked, the surface area around the pedal is more for control while technical mountain biking than it is for comfort. In reality, the extra space only helps at those moments when you clip out to put a foot down (or “dab” in mtb speak) and pop your foot back onto the pedal but don’t necessarily have time to clip back in right away. Also helps control when leaning hard on the bike while cornering. For use in an urban environment, there really isn’t much benefit to them over a standard SPD pedal like the M520 in your first link.

As far as surface contact for comfort, a road pedal such as the SPD-SL style 105 pedal has a significantly larger contact area between the cleat and the pedal, which is really what matters. Some will argue that the larger contact area provides better dispersal of pressure, cutting down on the incidence of hot spots or nerve strain at the cleat. Compare that to the relatively small footprint of a SPD mountain bike cleat and you can see why some make that argument. I think this really comes down to personal experience, as many people find no issue with a mtb cleat. Another argument is that you get better transfer of power with the larger contact area, but I don’t think there’s any empirical evidence to support that. Third, and this holds water, one tends to experience far less play in the interface between a road cleat and pedal than between a MTB cleat and MTB pedal. The little bit of play one can find annoying, and while “comfort” is a subjective term, I can say that excessive play in my pedal/cleat interface at the very least makes me psychologically uncomfortable. Fourth, and this one is the one that really matters, you have far more rotational placement options on a road cleat and pedal than you do with a MTB cleat. For people who have pigeon-toes or excessive splay in their stance, the option of rotating their cleat a few more degrees inward or outward can really make a huge difference in ankle and knee comfort.

Take all this with the caveat that it’s easy to walk around in a MTB shoe with the cleat installed. Clunking around on road shoes and cleats is a different matter entirely and something most couriers don’t want to partake in.

I'm having a similar issue to OP, got a used Trek 1000 56cm, my height is 1.79m, and I have upper back pain from tilting my head upwards to see straight. I can't go on the drops at all because they are too low once I've adjusted the seat to the correct height stem spacers are maxed out.

So I'm pretty sure I need to raise the handlebars, and I've got 2 options, either a simple stem raiser like this:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B013JY3BTK/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1502189618&sr=8-1&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_FMwebp_QL65&keywords=handlebar+riser&dpPl=1&dpID=41JuDYY0bVL&ref=plSrch

Or the ones with the adjustable angle like this:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B01KZKELY0/ref=pd_aw_sim_468_3?ie=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=C2MSH2APMK43Y3CR1JE6&dpPl=1&dpID=617j6iDxa8L

Which would you recommend? Are the adjustable angle ones more flexible for fitting?

One thing that worked for me, though I can't guarantee it will help others or not...

Have you ever tried handlegrips like these? (You may need to cut the flange off the handlegrip to not block your shifter though. Hard to tell just from the picture, I don't have that problem on my bike because no shifters. Tempted to get a geared hub sometime to make steep hills easier though, then I guess I'd need a shifter...)

I remember that for a while I had a different pair of handlegrips on my bike which, while they looked cool (black/gray flame pattern), they were uncomfortable for my hands after riding much at all. Switched to the ridged ones, the problem went away. Much more comfortable.

This might work it adds 20mm to the pedal spindle. You may also benefit from a higher quality pedal so your feet don't slide around.