How slow is reflection? Very slow apparently, thanks Sahil. But that matters not a jot - take a look at the discussion and this article on using reflection in a factory method, in particular the end. Reflection is slow, but it's also an invaluable tool. There are very few cases where you're going to be using it so often that you'll stress out your app. In other cases you'll be using it to do something that couldn't be achieved any other way. Swings and roundabouts, and speed isn't a be all and end all.