I found a Gerber Prybrid today.
My initial thoughts...someone used a growth ray on the Gerber Artifact!
IMG_9104A by
Chako, on Flickr
IMG_9105A by
Chako, on Flickr
Although the Artifact used small X-Acto blades, the Prybrid uses regular utility blades. The pry bar end is very nice. The utility blade mechanism needs a bit more work, if I am to be honest. It is not smooth at all, and I know of countless cheaper no name branded utility knives that got this better. Furthermore, Gerber decided to make the knife thin, which is great and all, but this comes at the expense of user interface. The blade release mechanism is a terrible one. Yes it does work, but while you are struggling to release the blade, you will most definitely increase your probability of cutting yourself. Not only is it fiddly, but to get to the mechanism, you have to press very hard on the slider button and push beyond the normal use stop detente. Ok, so how often do you change your blade? If you do a lot and need to change it often, I think the Prybrid will end up ultimately being annoying to the end user.
IMG_9107A by
Chako, on Flickr
The Gerber Prybrid is a neat compact design ultimately let down by a cheap high friction slider mechanism that is anything but smooth, and a fiddly blade removal system.