The Ebony pants are currently $104 and the caviar/blue ones are $430. Other than the color, are they any different?

Yah, I assume so. The Norrona website currently has "Festival Fuchsia", "Caviar" and "Caviar/Blue" as colours, so Ebony appears to be older product. I've decided to keep mine, and took them out on a ski tour last weekend...super happy. They were comfy, the mesh lined vents are great, and I love the fabric. It's like a hard softshell, and it's quiet in the backcountry. I just couldn't justify returning them and spending more than twice as much on other pants just for a side zip, when I probably don't really need the full zip. On the bright side, if you don't like them when the arrive or they don't quite fit, backcountry has a fantastic returns policy. =) Enjoy!

Thanks Andrea! I can see the zipper placement differences, but just don't get why the vast price difference, if they are essentially the same pant in craftsmanship/material. The pocket zippers don't really matter to me... the vent placement is the only one that may matter at all... so I think I'll go with ebony:-) I assume it's an older model of the same pant...

Oh yah. Major differences in the pockets and venting zippers - they're in completely different places. You can see the differences in location in the pictures above, and the reviews by myself (on the Ebony) and Merebea (on the Caviar/Blue) describe the features of each color/style. The other reviews on this page also highlight some of the differences. Basically, the Ebony has 1 hip pocket, 1 back pocket, 1 thigh slash pocket, inseam vents that are mesh-lined, and a zipper at the bottom of the pant that goes up to somewhere between the ankle and knee. The Caviar/Blue has 2 hip pockets, 1 thigh slash pocket, 1 back pocket, vents on the outside of the leg which I don't think are mesh-lined (can someone confirm?), and the zippers at the bottom. Other than the pockets & venting, I think that the fabric and construction is the same, but I only have the Ebony so I can't do a direct comparison. Hope that helps! Andrea