For the record my POF upper and lower are top notch so pleased! quality and all that they offer is unmatched ,havent quite tested the cleaning is optional slogan but I will.  It has more ,shot better,looks meaner and for the price I sold my colt 6920!this up grade feels awsome.

pistons are the wave of the future, as much as some would dissagree. i just got my POF 11.5 upper and now that i got a newpiston in it, its the bomb.

i run a suppressor with it and the clean up is so simple. the mess is all dry soot unlike the baked on crap of my DI uppers.

Piston driven uppers certainly have a place... not sure about being the wave of the future though, they date back to the 60s with Colt and I have had one for 20 plus years, but they no doubt will be used more in the future, especially on shorter barreled rifles.

It will be interesting to see what the price point is on the Sig 550 and the piston driven designs that will come out in the next year.