Should I ever find myself in the middle of a firefight, aesthetics is going to be the least of my concerns. As for cost, when you buy pistols by the truckload, they don't cost nearly as much as they do in a retail store. I carry a Glock because it's like the AK-47. Pull the trigger and it's going to go bang. Whether you're protecting the President or yourself, you don't want to go cheap. I get LE pricing, so it's not really that expensive for me.
There’s a saying: I show my friends my 1911. I show my enemies my Glock.