I disagree. basically, it is a Gen4 with a Gen2 grip layout. Ambi slide stops and a little bit more of a flair on the grip mag well.
Absolutely incorrect! Have you read ANYTHING substantive about these M pistols?
Maybe a few charming harmless unimportant little G17M characteristics, perhaps:
1. A barrel that is completely incompatible with ALL other full-size or greater barrels and pistols, caused by changes needed to unnecessarily lengthen the RSA.
2. A lengthened RSA that is incompatible with ALL other G17 RSAs.
3. A locking block that is completely incompatible with ALL other G17 locking blocks, required.by the new RSA and those worthless ambidextrous slide stop levers.
4. Weaker frame/locking block assembly due to the elimination of the locking block pin in order to accomodate the ambidextrous slide stop levers.
5. Slide lock and slide lock spring that is completely incompatible with versions used in ALL other Glock models. Apparently, failures (slides flying off frame) here that were experienced early in the attempted issue of the G17M have caused an ongoing delay of several months for any further attempted issue.
6. A square firing pin safety that is incompatible with all other firing pin safeties.
7. A slide that accomodates the above changes and is incompatible with any other slide.
8. A bizarre flaired magazine well that adds nothing positive to function as a weapon (but might be OK on a range toy).
Gosh...who wouldn't want one of these! Indeed...what's not to like about this radically new and untested MAJOR design change?
The above is doubtless NOT the complete listing of largely superfluous alterations newly made and poorly tested to what was once a very competent and supremely reliable design...one that was very well-tested by decades of actual field experience instead of a mish-mash of nonsense whose ONLY purpose and criteria for acceptance is meeting every "desired" requirement from a list made up by some committee.of government bureaucrats. Gobble it up, you gullible Glocksters!
The only reason Glock put finger louvers on his pistols was for importation points.
Louvers??? Nothing on any Glock I've ever seen meets the definition of a louver.
But...never mind. For other reasons your statement is incorrect. Long before the first Gen3 pistols with the finger grooves appeared, grooveless Glocks in compact and larger models were imported in great quantity. It was only the introduction of the subcompact "Gen2.5" G26 and G27 after late 1995 that required finger grooves and thumb dimples for import points. But...apparently most users found these to be of some real value because shortly thereafter the Gen3 design incorporated them on the larger frame models as well.