All I have are a 19 and 26, both with the grooves, so I have no reference for comparison to the 1st and 2nd generation guns. I like mine fine, and imo, the 26 would be horrible without them.
I fired a 17 or 19 once with the smooth grips, but it was a long time ago, it was my first glock experience, and I was thinking more about the "weird" trigger, so I didn't pay much mind to the grip.
The answer to your question is "yes, I like them", but that doesn't mean I like them better than the smooth ones. I don't know the smooth ones.