I've had bad experiences with the socks too, I had two pairs as gifts and they both failed within a couple of months. I said I'd never buy a pair but I got some of the light ankle length ones for a long trek earlier in the year and they worked out fine. I was walking all day in light running shoes with no attempt to keep the feet dry, after stopping to camp each night I'd sort out my feet, balmed and powdered and then slip on the Sealskinz and then back into the wet shoes.
The best socks I've found are the black MOD goretex ones, I once heard they were made by Sealskinz but I'm not sure how true that is.
The gloves are rubbish in my experience, any water that runs down a sleeve and gets inside just doesn't escape, on cold and wet days they're pants once they get wet.