The ST-E2 is not a radio trigger, it's basically a specialized mini-flash that is only capable of controlling other Canon flashes via IR pulses. Any Canon -EX flash can be controlled as a slave, but only the 550EX and 580EX can operate as a master as well. The ST-E2 has the same range and line-of-sight limitations as the 550/580EX. It works fine indoors, especially in rooms with light-colored walls, but outside, especially in bright sun, range is very limited and reliability is not always very good.
If you're going to use RF triggers I really recommend the Pocket Wizards over the cheaper triggers, as they are very reliable, have a longer range, and introduce less delay between the camera triggering and the strobe firing. The delay factor is important, as it allows you to use the highest sync speed the camera allows. If the radio trigger causes too much delay, instead of being able to shoot with strobes at 1/250, you may only be able to shoot at 1/160 or 1/125 before the shutter starts vignetting the shot. You get what you pay for.
If you are going to trigger your flashes with Pocket Wizards and adjust each flash's power manually, then the SB28 is a better choice than the 580EX or 550EX. Besides the price difference, you can adjust the power manually in 1/3-stop increments instead of 1/2-stop increments, and the SB28 has the PC jack on the side.