I had a German Shorthaired Pointer for 15 years until I had to put him down due to old age/health reasons.
He was a great dog. He was mainly a house pet, but I did hunt himw ith some training on a Pheasant farm I belonged to. He was natural pointer, and I never had to worry about him off a leash, because he would always keep me in sight in the field, and maintain about 30 - 50 yards ahead of me, then look back, stop, and wait until I caught up a bit, then he kept going maintaining that seperation unless I called him back.
GSP's are NOT dumb. They are in general bright, attentive dogs, with a kind dispostion. Yes, the are FULL of energy, and you must run them daily, so it is nice to have some land for them to run on. They need this daily or sometimes more. Yes, they are chewers, and get sepertion anxiety, if they are confined, make sure they have nothing to chew on, like hand towels, furniture, etc. Mine was not a furniture chewer, or destructive, but would eat things like hand towels if left alone, so keept stuff away.
They are great pets, and like others have said, not a mean bone in their bodies. Mine was an 80 lb male, very tall with long legs. Kids would bother him (pull ears, and tail, try to ride him, etc) when they came over, and he'd just leave the room, and give me a look like, "when are these effers leaving?"
They are probably a bit more work than your average Lab, but they are worth it. I want to get another one soon.