Thanks, aktchi. You do make a good point regarding carry-on size, I might go for a 19/20". I'm looking at Delsey as well. Samsonite is not very highly regarded, right? It is a big brand in the bags industry, but a quick search here revealed some negative thoughts..

I know that my carry-on doesn't have to be as sturdy as a bag designed to be checked - but as I said earlier, if it needs to be checked I don't want it to be destroyed after baggage handler abuse.