For me, regular folders are faster to open that those assisted ones. I've handled a few assist knives and didn't like any of them. By the time I've maneuvered them into a position in my hand where I feel safe flicking that assist release, I could have had a regular folder already open and in use. And some of them have safeties on them so they don't accidentally open in your pocket. While that's a good thing, it just slows down the knife even further when you have to mess with the safety. Add to all this the "Is it legal?" question. Whether it is or is isn't, you could still be in for a hassle from local law enforcement. I consider assisted opening knives as a solution in search of a problem, and a poor solution at that. Just my opinion, of course.