Introduced in 2012, this semi-auto, striker-fired pistol has been proven as an excellent concealed-carry handgun and soon became one of the best sellers. It has all features of the S&W full-sized M&P model, packed in micro-compact frame size. It’s lightweight and slim, with rounded attributes to enhance comfort. It’s chambered in 9mm cartridges, carried in 7 or 8-round single-stacked magazines. The grip is ergonomic and slim, good for average-size hands. The pistol comes with white dot front and rear sights that can be replaced. The smooth and short-pull trigger has two parts (a top and bottom) and features a trigger safety- if you pull the trigger too high, the pistol won’t fire. S&W owners claim that S&W M&P Shield gives a better trigger feel compared to Glocks. The little lever key holds the slide in place. Many parts can be replaced so the gun is highly customizable, and amazingly accurate as well. The original S&W M&P Shield now belongs to an older generation, since Shield Plus and Hi Viz models from the Shield line joined the market.