Is metal or plastic a better material to make laptops out of?

When I say better I mean better all around. More practical for cooling, housing components etc and for aesthetic reasons.

For years the laptops that I've owned have always been made out of plastic (except for the obvious parts that need to be made out of metal) until I purchased a Lenovo Y510p which was made out of metal.

I do a lot of gaming on it (Minecraft, Bioshock Infinite, Doom and GTA IV) and the side where the graphics card is does rank up a bit of heat. Does the fact that it is made out of metal help with the cooling at all?

Don't know why I'm asking this question, I just kind of wondered about it whilst running a benchmark.

The Mutt House

Wood

Guest

I don't think metal vs plastic on the skin makes much difference in cooling. Cooling depends on moving air through the unit. If we depended on the metal enclosure to radiate heat, we'd see heat sinks on it.

I've always thought of laptops as being to carry around, to use 'in the field', i.e. On a bus, at Starbucks, on a bench in the park, etc. Metal would be tougher but it's also a lot heavier. Plastics these days work better than metal for a lot of things. But these days I know a lot of people who buy laptops to sit on their desk and never take them anywhere. I never understood that.

Lenovo makes really good stuff! Very well-designed, very dependable, rugged and tough. I wonder if the metal is just a veneer over plastic!

Mr. Smartypants

Anodized aluminum seems the metal of choice of many well known big computer makers. AL chassis (in Pro laptops) seem to not only shrink the footprint of copper used for heat sink but, it will also disperse the electrostatic discharge far better than a shielded plastic case. Also, a clever cooling design could eliminate the use of fans all together.

Nelius

Metal is better, stronger, most desktop PC's are made of metal

james

I'm not that sure if it makes much of a difference but I know metal is more conductive than plastic as far as heat.

ben