Black vs Carbon Fibre - Differences between finishes - Please help!

Sony sure has done a terrible job at describing or showing the difference between these finishes on their website. All I get is a tiny pixelated image, which does not help me at all. Not to mention all the gallery picture links are broken. It is really a shame that for such an expensive laptop, there is no description or info about this whatsoever.

On the customization page for the Vaio Z it lists the following finishes:

-Black
-Carbon Fibre Black + $50.00
-Premium Carbon Fibre Black + $100.00

I have no interest in a glossy finish, so I don't think I would want to pay $100.00 extra for the piano black like finish of the Premium Carbon Fibre Black.

I'm interested in knowing the difference between: Black vs Carbon Fibre Black

I have tried looking everywhere to find this information and I cannot find it anywhere. I'd like to know exactly what the difference is between these two finishes.

Are they both carbon fibre or is the black option a cheaper plastic material? It is my understanding that they are both matte.

Anyone know what the difference is? Is worth the extra $50.00?

 

Black (left) // Carbon Black (right): photo

Personally, I tend to like the black one better. The color of my TZ (carbon) changes from black to gray to muddy brown, depending on ambient light and angle. Quite an interesting effect, but on the long run I prefer the clean and classy look of the black SVZ I'm currently using. Deeper black level like OLED vs. TFT.

 

Is the difference purely cosmetic or is there also a weight difference?

 

Thanks for the picture, Isr. I recently found this image online:




Black (left) // Carbon Black (right)

 

The standard black finish is still carbon, right?

 

There has been a great deal of inconsistency across model lines and even over a year within the same model line with the "custom" CF finishes and the standard CF Matte that is the essentially all the same material with different levels and types of buffing and finishing. I agree that the standard matte finish (generally untreated as far as I can tell0 is both the best looking and the most durable in terms of surface scratches.

One final word to the wise: CF, at least the caliber use by Sony in its recent premium notebook casings, has emphasized light weight over tensile strength as the "fancy plastic weave" is known to encounter such tradeoffs. In order to keep such light weights Sony has milled some disappointingly lightly woven materials that crack incredibly easily, under very little stress. the casings should be well protected by hard shell carriers when transported and carefully placed out of harm's way then any knocks from hard surfaces or sliding off of tables or chairs is possible. Take it from one who is both clumsy and OCD in care of these great pieces of work; Given that I've spent over $900 on CF case part replacements and still have unsightly tape over areas I can't bring myself to purchase replacements for twice in the same year - I can tell you, you can't get too obsessed using skins and other means of protecting the original surfaces from a hard life of traveling. As it is, I'm trying to decide whether to purchase more replacement parts or simply part-out the fine gold Z22 I have and use the proceeds to purchase a refurbished or slightly used model. Some of the bargains available on eBay are pushing me in the direction of the latter because, as perfectly functional as my purchased Z22 with a nearly all replaced outer body pieces is, it may be worth getting back to perfection just to avoid the stares i get when people see my damaged goods!