If you have sought to acquire a computer or laptop In recent months they will have verified that many elements remain the same in terms of their finishes, where the majority are made of plastic or simple aluminum.
Occasionally we have come across some much more elaborate models that opt for much more complex metal alloys and transparencies. But overall the picture remains the same.
Those who had the opportunity to experience the beginning of the computer industry will clearly remember that in the 70s and 80s it was even possible to find some computers built on wooden bodies.
But that’s long behind us, which leads us to an interesting and unavoidable question: why do laptops and desktops have aluminum or wooden bodies?
Three key factors for this mass production decision
the colleagues of hard zone have recently published an interesting editorial article where they try to explain the reasons why the manufacturing and assembly industry for PC towers and laptops has opted for these two basic materials during the last decades.
At the end of his analysis the reasons are simple and boil down to three key factors that end up marking aluminum and wood as the most obvious materials:
The first factor is that both plastic and aluminum are extremely abundant materials. Which means that there will be no supply problems for its mass production, nor increases in its cost due to supply and demand.
In second position, it is pointed out that they are materials that are quite easy to handle, which stands out and seems obvious when looking at the wide variety of CPU towers and laptop bodies that we find on the market.
And finally, the third factor of weight would be the price of the materials itself, an element that is directly linked to the first one indicated on the list.
This without counting other very obvious qualities that stand out. For example, aluminum is very resistant and at the same time has an attractive lightness compared to other materials.
The plastic for its part is ideal for component parts such as buttons, keys or the chassis itself that protects the display of a laptop if harsh use activities are not carried out.
Wood was left behind as an option due to the advancement of the industry itself, where this material was not optimal due to the heat dissipation needs and the energy demand of the components on something this flammable.
For these reasons the industry would follow the same trend for some time.
