Magnesium Alloy, Rollcage, Carbon Fiber?

Magnesium Alloy, Rollcage, Carbon Fiber, ABS Plastic and others that I don't know.
These are some materials that laptop manufactures use to make their laptops. What are the differences between these materials? Should I care what it is made of? Do they really make a difference in daily use and reliability? On what part does the laptop have have these materials? How does it work? The plastic on the outside and the metals on the inside? Could somebody explain this to me?

Example Laptops:
ASUS R1F has Magnesium Alloy Lid w/ Carbon Fiber Chassis
ASUS V2 has Carbon Fiber Lid and Chassis
Lenovo T60, T61 has a Roll Cage
Latitudes, Vostros, Precision have Full Magnesium-alloy construction
HP business class notebooks have Magnesium alloy enclosure

 

Normally material type is referring to the outside of the laptop, however this varies. You really need to handle this on a per laptop basis, your questioning is extremely generic.

Roll cages are typically support frames built around components internally.

 

Specifically, my ASUS R1F has Magnesium Alloy Lid w/ Carbon Fiber Chassis, but how do I know?

Most brands do not say what the laptop is made of unless it is a business class laptop. So, does this mean that home class laptops are made just of plastic?
Do Inspirons not have metal chassis?

Does a home edition laptop really differ from business class ones? Are they more reliable? How?
Home/Business
Dell Inspiron/Latitude
Lenovo ---/T series
HP Compaq Pavilion and Presario/NX, NC, and NW series
Toshiba Satellite/Tecra

 

They do matter, but not as much as you may think. Quality wise, it does help a bit, as it doesn't wear as quickly and is often more reinforced. Price wise, it may be more of a gimmick, as it's not often pure alloy but a composite mix of plastic and (x) materials.

The R1f's lid is a composite Magnesium and ABS plastic, so it's slightly more durable then just ABS plastic. Same goes for its chassis.

Most consumer based notebooks are pure plastic. Most business models have composite alloys in their body, so it lasts much longer and is more durable.

 

So a business and consumer laptops should be equally reliable?

 

Business notebooks are generally alot more durable and of higher quality as there is often more R&D work, as well as using better materials in the manufacturing process.

 

So a business notebook would be better in the long run and would be worth the extra cost?

 

Definitely.

From what I've come to believe, if you're dealing strictly with exoskeletons:
carbon fiber > mag alloy > plastic

But once you get into internal frames, it's more difficult to say. The quality and stability of a good frame will do a lot more than the outside material, if there is a frame. But a plastic chassis with a mag alloy frame, like the thinkpads, will still get all creaky sounding, and mag alloy or carbon fiber around a good frame will be have better longevity.

I would avoid the cheap builds (most laptops) which are just plastic without much if any frame.

 

I am not impressed with carbon fiber cases. I have seen a piece of real carbon fiber in person and the carbon fiber in laptops is crap. The cases are made of 1 part carbon fiber and 99 parts cheap plastic. I think metal cases are the most durable.