SD9VE was the first handgun I purchased. I ended up selling it, but wish I had not. It ate everything I fed it, and never gave me one ounce of trouble. At that time, I wanted a single action CZ, and sold it to help finance the buy. I do like the M&P line better, but who doesn't? Anyway, I used the SD9VE as a nightstand weapon and open carry as I didn't have a CC permit at the time.
I think that you'd be hard-pressed to find anyone on the planet choosing an SD irrespective of its price. So, comparisons between a $500 gun and a $320 gun (Academy prices) means that $180 difference in price buys you a lot more gun. Sure, if price were no object, we'd all be buying H&K's - unless we work for S&W or own stock in the company.
Between similarly-prices guns, like a Glock 17, a Springfield XD, a Beretta PX4 and an S&W M&P, the choices are not so cut and dried (except for me as I hate Glocks). Each will have their plusses and minuses.
Speaking of Shlocks...I mean, Glocks, I have heard a lot of negatives about the Gen 4's from folks who owned the earlier models - especially G17's. In effect, you're paying the same amount of money for less of a gun.
At least S&W and Ruger made it plain that they wanted to offer a "stripped-down version" of their higher priced guns with the "VE" suffix on S&W's and the "E" suffix on Rugers.
BTW, the Ruger PE is almost identical to the SR9, and its price point has come down to SD territory. The same can't be said for the SD, however, as it doesn't really bear family resemblances like the Shield does, for example.
Now, about owner's satisfaction with the SD line.
I think a great indicator are the ratings and reviews left by people who bought their SD's at Academy. They are not gun afficionadoes. They don't own five guns and needed a sixth. They are mainly first-time, semi-auto gun buyers, but a number of them are graduating up from .380's or adding a second gun for home defense.
Visit Academy.com and check out just the ratings left for the SD9 and the SD40:
For the SD9, there were 68 5-star ratings, 8 4-star ratings, and 1 3-star rating, for an average of 4.9 out of 5.
For the SD40, there were 54 5-star ratings, 11 4-star ratings, 2 3-star ratings, and 1 2-star ratings for a 4.7 out of 5.
I attribute the lower ratings to the major differences in user experience between firing a .40SW versus a 9mm, given the size and weight of the SD40.
Nevertheless, add all of them together and here's what I would call a very objective and representative rating by the average buyer:
112 5-stars
19 4-stars
3 3-stars
1 2-stars
For an average rating of 4.8 out of 5 for 135 customers.
I'd say that's a pretty good indicator of customer satisfaction for a new pistol that has to overcome a checkered past.
