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While the "traditional" D&D armors are fun, and Paizo's armor art is LEAGUES ahead of WoTC's 3rd edition armor art, the lineup does lack some consistency, insofar as armor is compared to our historical versions. Yes, I get that it's supposed to be fantasy art, but I like to put more earth history in my games. So, for those who are of a similar mind, I recommend the following armor lineup:
Gambeson (Padded)
Leather
Studded Leather
Byrnie (Chain Shirt)
Hide
Coat of Plates (Scale Mail)
Brigandine (Chainmail)
Full Chain (Breastplate)
Plated Mail (Splint Mail)
Banded Mail
Plate and Chain (Half-Plate)
Full Plate
Descriptions:
Gambeson: Also called an arming doublet, a gambeson is a thick quilted coat made to fit underneath any armor. While it does provide some protection alone, it is much more effective when worn with leather or steel over it. Any character who owns a suit of armor also owns a gambeson. The cost of the gambeson is included in the total armor cost. A character already wearing a gambeson may don the rest of his armor more quickly than usual, taking five rounds off the total time. If the time is reduced to zero, then it still requires a move action.
Leather: [no change]
Studded Leather: [no change]
Byrnie: [same as Chain Shirt]
Hide: [no change]
Coat of plates: A coat of plates is a thick cloth coat with metal (usually steel) plates sewn into it. It is effective protection, does not have to be fitted to the wearer, and is less labor-intensive than chain.
Brigandine: The superior version of a coat of plates. It is typically worn over some chain (for the legs and arms) and with a helmet, but protects the torso very well.
Full Chain: A full suit of chain hangs better on the wearer than mismatched chain, and provides superior protection. Naturally, it is harder to make and is therefore more expensive.
Plated Mail: A full suit of chain armor, with plates placed over the most vital areas, plated mail is very protective and very heavy.
Banded Mail: No more than a refinement of plated mail, banded armor takes more skill to make.
Plate and Chain: A full suit of chain with a breastplate, full helm, gauntlets, and greaves. Armor does not get heavier than this, but a mix of plate and chain does not have to be fitted to the wearer. If a suit of full plate is looted from an enemy, it may be turned into plate and chain very easily, without the need for refitting. This does, however, require a full suit of chain armor.
Full Plate: [no change]
While this is of course not perfect, and it still contains some fairly common misconceptions about armor in general, there's no way to really fix all of those without a complete overhaul of the system.
I like the idea of "full chain" being the best of the medium armors and "full plate" being the best of the heavy armors. Were it not for this, I think I would have had brigandine replace the breastplate, and have full chain stand in for the "chainmail".
Plated and banded mail weren't terribly popular in history, but neither are they popular in the game. So I think that actually works out pretty well.