If You're Buying a Studio 15 or 17... go to your local store and...

check out their studio display.

i've just been to Staples in NYC and i saw a Studio 15 in display with a miniature cover color options as well...

well, this is good way to actually see the color... but more importantly...

this is a good way to see what it's going to look like in a couple of months...

the red picked up a lot of hand stain and you can notice the darkened and dirty edges... so did most of the rubberized colors... but shows more on the dark colors...

well, it's bound to happen... eat a big mac and close/open your lid... hand oil stains will transfer to the surface and being a rubbery coated surface... it's going to pick up nicely too...

just some thoughts...

 

The in store displays are like notebooks gone into a war zone. I wouldn't put much stock into what they look like considering most people could care less about what the do to the display models. Whereas someone who purchased a notebook is more likely to take much better care in handling and cleaning.

 

Quoted for truth.

 

I've seen people purposefully scratch and try to chip paint off of notebooks to see how easily they could do it. I can't even imagine the sheer number of people who come through the NYC staples and play around with the notebooks.

 

I did as the OP suggested to "touch and feel" a Studio 15 (and Inspiron 1525) prior to ordering my Studio 17 yesterday. Staples had a unit plus that sample color board you mentioned (excluding graphite gray). Best Buy had a unit with their locking bar security device which rubs firmly against the laptop lid. A good way to see how cosmetics endure in their war zone shopping environment. I was impressed how well the rubberized paint held up and also seemed to shrug off (intentional) fingernail scratching. I hadn't thought about hand and food oils being absorbed into and staining the color.

In the end, I ordered my S17 yesterday instead in graphite gray with black trim. It's a look I doubt I'll tire of and fingerprints will easily be removed. Just my $.02...

 

hey, if your laptop looks like that in the near future, geesh... toughbook may be recommended? ha ha ha...

it's a worse case scenario... plus a good way to see how your select color endures the "torture test" so to speak...

i am tad concerned because:

1) 90% of notebook bags use either polyester brushed tricot fabric to line their bags or a polyester lycra jersey bonded with sponge (neoprene) and though these are good fabrics, not the best... and it will wear and tear.

the brushed tricot fabric is same as you find in the cheap roof lining of cars.

2) the rubber coating, as been used by many mice and keyboard mfg and also phones, will eventually wear and peel, exposing a black plastic (or whatever plastic or base material it was coated over) and hence i was curious to see how it wears under "torture test"...

the Staples model had the lower back section of the screen cover brushed hard against the locking display unit and it actually peeled the coating, exposing a black under-sufrace...

looks like it took some brute force and abuse to create it... guess i can live with it...


meh... just my overzealous concerns i guess...