polycarbonate plastic VS. carbon fiber alloy

The iBooks are designed to take a lot of shit. They get scratches, however, but they can be buffed out if they get too bad.

Unless you're going to be taking it into areas where it will get dropped or bumped or sat on, etc., then your decision really comes down to whether or not you want a Mac or PC.

You might want to consider Panasonic toughBook, that might be relevant with the usage conditions as you described..

I saw one of the thinner toughbooks in a store recently, didnt seem too tough to me!

the polycarbonate is less about the rigidity than it is about being durable per a certain degree of flexibility. the magnesium frame has more to do w/ the strength of the overall chassis. the iBook's hard drive is rubber mounted, so that's a plus beyond the ding-resistant shell. the actual IDE connector isn't soldered to the mobo either, it's connected via a ribbon connector which u can see below (as well as the rubber mounts). notice how the drive isn't even directly bolted to the chassis, very nice for taking bumps and jolts.



personally, i'd suggest that u consider how to better care for your laptop as well as looking for a durable laptop. perhaps one of the biggest issues is the quality of transportation. i carried my old compaq for 5 years in a laptop backpack, going from class to class and on trips. i had it stuffed almost to the point of popping at times and never had an issue w/ the notebook being harmed. this is in part due to the bag and how i chose to place it when setting it down. the nice thing w/ the backpacks is that u can set them down relatively upright. if it was ever off balance i would just lean it up against my chair (usually it's the backside of the pack that wants to lean over, where the laptop is stored). this way the laptop never has undue pressure put on it regardless of how many books are onboard. this would also work w/ a messenger bag to a certain degree. in sum, it's a poor idea to stack anything weighty on a laptop simply because it's supposed to be "rugged". more bluntly, don't lay your backpack down flat w/ your notebook as a platform for your books to sit on, it's piss-poor notebook care. my compaq was your run of the mill laptop too and it's still running to this day.

also, a good notebook bag will have a suspended laptop compartment, so that when u set it down, your books take the potential (if any) shock and not your computer.