[lazerpants]

I actually dig the patinated look of my dented and scratched old MBP and my current MBA. My plastic Dells from work always look terrible after a few trips living in my backpack and getting banged around. Haven't had actual usability issues with either though.

[eldaisfish]

I have.

Plastic is great, until your laptop falls and the plastic shell shatters. That's the weakness of plastic - it's brittle. I have a ten year old macbook with a dinged aluminium chassis. The structure of the shell is still intact despite a few falls.

[p_ing]

Not all plastics are brittle, even after time. It is highly dependent on the plastic used.

[eldaisfish]

ok, now please explain whether any plastic is more or less brittle than aluminium.

[p_ing]

It's not.

That being said, aluminum will suffer from dents and scratches. Every material is a trade off. You're not going to pull a "gotcha" comment, here.