I use the good old fashioned syphon break. I would never rely on a check valve, because there isn't a 100% chance they will work when you need them to. Even a brand new one can stick. Syphon breaks don't get clogged, because when the pump is running, there is water flowing through the hole constantly. It is staying flushed out. In theory, if it ever did clog, the reversing of the flow in the pipe should suck the clog out, anyway. Also, if a break does get clogged, you know it ahead of time, because there won't be water flowing from the hole that is above water. If a check valve fails, you know it when you are mopping the floor. I have been running breaks for years, and haven't yet seen one come even close to clogging. If one does clog, the hole is probably too small.
In the original post, you compared a check valve to a canister. True, a canister does need to be cleaned, and the pump will wear out some day. However, when it is dirty, flow will slow, and the tank will look dirty with crap floating around. Then you clean it. You have an indication that it needs servicing. You don't get that with a failing check valve. I'm also not relying on a canister filter to possibly hold back a couple hundred gallons of water while I'm at work.
It is also very possible to keep a system dead silent without the use of check valves. The outputs can be underwater, just the break has to be above water. If the break is sucking up debris when the pump is shut off, then it is too close to the surface. It should be far enough away from the surface to only suck air as soon as the pump is shut off.
I suppose the perfect setup would be a check valve AND a syphon break, because the chances of them both failing at once would be extremely rare. However if I had to run one OR the other, I would not be at all comfortable with a check valve without a break for backup.