I've never really got comfortable with the steam function on irons, so I don't use it. I keep a spray bottle around for stubborn creases, though I'm now trying to make sure that I don't let my fabric get too creased when I prewash it as that's the main problem. I don't use the spray bottle often.
The main thing for me is the size of the iron. Unless I'm pressing whole pieces of fabric to prepare them, or pressing a completed quilt top before basting, I don't use a standard sized iron. I use a little travel iron which sits on a tabletop ironing board on my sewing desk, so I can press without doing more than reaching a few inches further away. I find that the small size and light weight of the iron are much better for those little 1/4" seams, it's much easier to manoeuvre, whether it's straight seams or curved ones, or appliqué come to that. If I was using a big heavy standard iron for piecing, I suspect I'd end up with distortions and accidentally pressing in creases and such.
Spray starch - I've found that while it makes the fabrics easier to handle because they're stiffer, it also means that if the top gets folded up at any point (and sooner or later it will, especially around basting time) then I get creases settling in which are much harder to get out. This also happens with quilting frame creases. So now I'm pretty much keeping it for appliqué and for sewing small pieces on the bias, since I had no end of fun with some small triangles a while back.