Don't have to clean it??? A friend of mine uses an Xtrema. He couldn't get it to fire on our dove season opener. I looked at it and saw it was dirty. His reply? "They say you don't need to clean them." What? It's a machine folks. You want a gun that doesn't stop, get an 870. 10,000,000 870's made. The number speaks for itself. $1600??? One of these companies needs to bring back the Model 12 the way they used to be made. They need to put a barrel on it that can handle steel shot. If you make me a brand new Model 12 that could take steel shot, with the quality they were known for before 1964 I would pay $1600 tomorrow.

So how is it better than my 3" 1100 Mag? I don't need 3 1/2", or need to shoot faster. BTW, what dinosaur did they kill with it?

Ahh,,pricey sure, but if it's a Beretta it's worth it!

YAWN..................another over-hyped auto.

I'm sure it's a good gun and all that. The name is so 'Battlestar Galactica/PONG 1978' - that alone hurts it. See if they had called it just A400 and instead of hyping it and doing the whole 'dinosaur' bit try this on for size:

"Beretta announces our newest model - the A400.
Incorporating advances in the gas system over our previous models - now with a breakthrough price at $999.
Available also in Tactical, Waterfowl, and now, Left Hand."

If they hit us with that there would be no need for hype, and all they would need to do is ramp up production and fill orders. When they price it where the average person doesn't have stretch to buy it, it will be a winner.

Sounds like a great shotgun. Can't wait to see one. But why do they advertise this way? All it does it disappoint and inflame ire.

squirrelgirl-
It says Beretta on it somewhere, hence the (over) price!

$1600 my first two cars didn't cost that much. Where do people get these prices at?

What's the dilly-do with the need to "shoot faster?" Is Beretta appealing to the YouTubers who upload videos of themselves blazing away at nothing or to real hunters??This gun is nothing more than another semi-auto that can feed 2 3/4" to 3 1/2" shells, spit empties faster than a pro-baseball player spits sunflower shells, and leap tall gun counters into a buyer's arms in a single bound. It's still kinda boring!

I have the money, but would never buy one. I still think my A5's are retro-cool and I'll live with their limitations. If I want a soft shooting gas-auto, I'll use my Browning B2000 or my 11-87's. Okay, obviously I'm not a waterfowler, but I still don't buy the need for 2 1/2 oz's. of anything flung into the air unless you're taking down an Apache copter.

I'd pay $2,000 for a modern M12 made today that has the same workmanship and craftsmanship as one made in, say 1939; but not $1,600 for this Beretta.

Well, when Phil gave us that teaser blog about a week ago, a lot of us guessed the new gun would be a shotgun, and we were right. An auto that can go ten thousand rounds without stoppage or cleaning would certainly have applications for the police and military, never mind the dove shooters. And dinosaurs? If the ammo companies would develop a slug load for 3 1/2" shells that took full advantage of all the room inside that big hull, even Brachiosaurus might be vulnerable to it from some angles.

$1600 for a semiautomatic shotgun? Hmmm..... I paid less than that for a restored sxs 16 ga. of English make that weighs 6lbs. with 29" barrels and absolutely knock out English walnut. It positively reeks of British understated elegance; a joy to hunt with and admire. Times do change however. At a recent Annie Oakley trapshoot during a dove hunt weekend, a young shooter next to me in the line (and armed with the latest synthetic stocked camo 3 1/2" 12 auto)commented on how "cool" my shotgun looked and wanted to know if it was new. I informed him it was a 103 yr old A.H. Fox. He had never seen a side by side before. That is a shame. He missed one a few shots later; the old Fox did not.

Well, when Phil gave us that teaser blog about a week ago, a lot of us guessed the new gun would be a shotgun, and we were right. An auto that can go ten thousand rounds without stoppage or cleaning would certainly have applications for the police and military, never mind the dove shooters. And dinosaurs? If the ammo companies would develop a slug load for 3 1/2" shells that took full advantage of all the room inside that big hull, even Brachiosaurus might be vulnerable to it from some angles.

I will keep my Remington 1100, 870 & Stevens 311 and Newly bought Citori thank you. The first three of them cost me less than the Beretta. I used to own two of those. EMPHASIS on USED TO.

So wing shooting at pteradactyls maybe, Quetzalcoatlus perhaps no. Oviraptor yes, Allosaur no. And it is poretty much just an autoloading shotgun. What the hey! I ain't buying one, I have a MOSSBERG 500! What will that Beretta do that my old Mossie wouln't?

Seems to me that a new shotgun that is compact, handles all loads, recoils less, cycles faster and has a traditional look ....is a good thing.
I suppose some will always buy on price, drive their YUGO and sneer at a better car because they both "drive". I'd rather have a better car.....and a better shotgun. I hope it is as good looking as Phil says it is!

It's a good looking gun and from the description it was probably made to compete with the SBE2. There will be some that will buy it, but 2009 probably wasn't the best year to release a $1600 gun.

The Ithaca 37 is still being made but it would be nice to see some other classic guns like the a-5 and model 12 being made again but with modern features. A well made, affordable, American double gun would be nice too.