Took me a while to come around. I'm a dedicated old revolver man and still am! First polymer frames I tried didn't positively impress me at all, beyond magazine capacity and easier reloading. Continued to shoot one or another over the years when I had a chance. When the S&W M&P line came out, things began to change more quickly for me. Bought a used M&P 9 full sized, and I loved the way it felt, shot, and performed. I was also coming around by this time to using the 9MM caliber due to the noticeable improvement in factory rounds being built for personal protection needs. Then I bought a used M&P 45 with a 4" barrel. This one had the ambi batwing safety but the price was really right. After shooting this one, I was a believer! Softest shooting .45ACP I've ever owned, and accurate as well. Studied a bit, then removed the ambi safety lever from the mechanism without any negative consequences excepting the two small openings in the frame where the safety fit, which didn't bother me a bit.
And then along came the Shields!!! Bought the 9MM for myself and later for my wife. Carried mine daily for a long time. Then came the .45ACP Shield and curiostity got the best of me. I just wanted to see if all the folks who said it was easy to shoot were telling the truth! They were! Now I have and daily carry one of those! It's been an amazing EDC!
These M&P S&W Semi-autos have a great deal for me to like very much! Lighter weight but easier shooting for the calibers and the sizes, great ammo capacity, much easier and quicker to reload than my revolvers and easier to carry and use spare ammo, and every one that I've had any experience with have been totally reliable by my standards. Some relatively few folks have had some problems, which mostly have been growing pains fixed by the factory. Not me! And I'm thankful for that. I've owned some of these from shortly after they were released on the market.
What's not to like? Well, they ain't near as purty and good to look at as my revolvers, but for me, pretty is as pretty does, and mine have been beautiful for me! But I'll say that I've come to appreciate how they look quite a bit. Personally, I think the M&P models are the best looking polymer framed handguns on the market. I especially like the angle of the grips! There are lots of good brands for sale, and I've tried some of them. None of the other brands fit my hands as well or as comfortably nor have they fired and functioned for me as well as my M&P models across the board.
I still love my revolvers and still carry them at times with pleasure and confidence. But for all day long, everyday comfortable carry, nothing beats my Shield 45. That's for me, of course. And to top this all off, my wife is the new proud owner of a Shield EZ. As she has gotten older, her hand strength has diminished to the point that she struggles to operate her Shield 9. She can still operate the full sized 9 pretty well, but it ain't an EDC! This Shield EZ has been an absolute revelation for us, especially for her. I agree the caliber is at the low end of acceptability for personal protection, but she can operate this handgun like pattin' her foot in time to good music! She shoots it plenty well enough, especially at closer ranges, to make good hits on a human predator. It's the first handgun she's been really personally excited about to own and carry. She even asks when we can go shooting! Hallelujah! She has eight rounds at her disposal plus extra mags, and she can load those mags very easily for herself! And bonus is that she can and will take it down and clean it for herself after we go shooting!
So there is plenty of room in our accumulation for these polymer framed handguns. For me, it would be just foolish to ignore them. That full sized M&P9 sits at the head of our bed with 17+1 ready to go with a CT grip red laser in place, and for us, there is no better house gun if things go sideways around here! It also does double duty as an extra gun in the vehicle when we travel. I still own and love several revolvers and always will. But there is a place for the polymer guns we own. I'm glad they are available as a choice, especially the S&W M&P models across the board!
Plastic is wonderful. Honest! Please do it. Thank you. 
