Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to polymer pistol lovers everywhere. Back in August, TFB’s own Nathaniel F. penned a post about Smith & Wesson trademarking ‘M2.0’ for use in an upcoming product release. And from the looks of a silent Academy announcement by way of a plain old vanilla new pistol listing, rumors of an upgrade to the S&W M&P pistol line appear to be correct.

Besides the updated styling and M2.0 markings, the new pistol apparently features a new proprietary corrosion resistant finish, a new trigger assembly, full grip stippling and four grip inserts instead of the three included with the last models.

A search on the Academy Sports website reveals six new M&P’s available for purchase – three chambered in 9mm and three chambered in the beleaguered.40S&W cartridge. Prices for all six are set at $529.99 and are listed as ‘sold in select stores’.

Smith & Wesson M&P M2.0 Academy Product Page:

The Smith & Wesson M&P M2.0 9mm Semiautomatic Pistol features an M&P M2.0 trigger and includes both a control-enhancing grip texture and 4 interchangeable palm swell grip inserts. This striker-fired pistol also includes a corrosion-resistant Armornite finish and boasts a steel-white dot front sight and steel-white 2-dot rear sight.

Features and Benefits

• Semiautomatic, striker-fired action with a 17-round capacity
  
• Corrosion-resistant Armornite finish
  
• Aggressive grip texture
  
• 4 interchangeable palm swell grip inserts
  
• M&P M2.0 trigger
  
• Steel-white dot front sight and steel-white 2-dot rear sight
  
• Important Product and Safety Information
  

We recommend the use of protective eyewear whenever using or near the use of this item.

What’s in the Box:
Smith & Wesson M&P M2.0 9mm Semiautomatic Pistol

For comparison, here are a few images of the M&P pistols currently listed on Smith & Wesson’s web page:

So, was this an intentional product release organized by both Smith & Wesson and Academy Sports or a mistake adding a new pistol into a inventory database before an official launch? With the 2017 SHOT Show just a month away, common sense dictates the release of the updated M&P pistol would have occurred sometime in the next few weeks anyway.

Even though I bow to the Glock Gods, I’m looking forward to giving this new S&W a shot.