I am a shoe nut... Too many to talk about. I also love the Keen line of shoes. The Altra Instinct reminds me of a Keen shoe. It has a really wide toebox which I love. The quality of this shoe looks excellent.  I normally take a size 12 shoe so ordered a size 12 Altra and it seems true to size. When I first opened the box my first thought is that the shoe looked to be short.  When I tried them on they felt perfect. I suggest you order to size. You could be in trouble if you went shorter. I am currently using a Nike Free+ shoe, a couple of pairs of Brooks PureCadence and Pureflow. I am really happy with all of these shoes. The Pureflows are 4mm drop while the new Altra is a zero drop. I plan to alternate my shows to slowly let myself adapt to the newer zero drop Altra. I have read articles that say the Altra should feel like a slipper... It certainly is wide enough like a slipper but the minimal inside padding is pretty firm which is what the majority of minimalist runners are looking for.  So in a nutshell the Altra appears to be a great shoe if zero drop is the way you would like to go.  I intend to buy the silver color also.  I have heard that they wear for a really long time so hope that is true.  Just my $0.02 YMMV.

THIS IS A FOLLOW UP WITH THE NEW SILVER PAIR I JUST RECEIVED:  This pair fits well also but there is a rustling cellophane noise that comes from the inside in the upfront toe/tongue area.  I think it is some kind of thin finishing material but it makes a crackling noise when walking... Not totally annoying but you can hear it.  Other buyers have mentioned this also.  I am thinking it will go away as the material starts to relax and crease.  I would imagine the next model will have addressed this issue. Still high on these shoes no matter what.