Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Darker laptops have been out for years and have long been accepted they attract more finger prints, its nothing new. Its just been a very long time since apple has released such a dark colour, but I dont get why its such a shock that this is what a dark anodized finish will do lol.
 
Fuji (the camera company) released the X-Pro2 a few years ago. It has a titanium case that was either painted black or came with an optional vapor coating applied. This vapor coating also attracts fingerprints like a magnet -- people were equally up in arms about how it made their camera look dirty.. blah blah blah. I got one with the vapor coating, smeared my greasy fingers all over it, and at a certain point it become just a cool patina on the camera.

Same with the Midnight Air. Trying to keep it clean is pointless. When you have a single big smudge it looks like crap. But keep up the hard work of smearing your DNA on it and after a while it looks mottled and frankly kinda cool. Plus it acts as a theft deterrent - who wants to steal a grimy greasy laptop :)
 
  • Like
Reactions: Eric Idle
who wants to steal a grimy greasy laptop

If you look at used Black MacBooks listed for sale, you might wander who’s buying these grimy grody crumb buckets.

Even when they were fairly new, I always turned away offers and opportunities to go black because, YIKES, people are gross! Not good at any price.

I got fooled by a Fuji digital at MotoGP. I was shooting with the Canon T70 and saw a guy with a Fuji. I said, “you’re shooting film too?”, then he turned the camera to reveal the digital back.🤦‍♂️
 
My new work computer form Dell is darkly colored and suffers no fingerprints at all. It's got a sort of fake carbon fiber looking exterior. I wonder how they get away without fingerprints.
 
Carbon fiber is a completely different surface and plastic that is not glossy or shiny resist’s fingerprints naturally. Plus the carbon fiber texture and finish also redirects light in a way that resists showing fingerprints.

I think Dell actually uses carbon fiber at least in their xps line and Lenovo has a model that uses it as well. There are other super strong and light plastics that would work well for laptops. Even a fake carbon fiber plastic would be more fingerprint resistant due to the textured surface.

As long as consumers feel aluminum is a premium finish and think plastic is not I doubt Apple will ever use it.

I like carbon fiber a lot and would love a Mac made of it completely. It would be stronger and lighter than aluminum.

Apple also uses the metal case as sort of a heat sink on certain models so I am not sure plastic of any kind would work.

I also like magnesium as a casing metal for laptops. It is also lighter and stronger than aluminum. Probably better for the environment too.
 
I have to see the Starlight color in person. From pictures I can't tell what color it is. Not sure how it handles fingerprints.

I had a Rose Gold MacBook that I just loved. Otherwise I'd go with boring silver. I've had loads of silver laptops and never thought about fingerprints at all.
I have Starlight - I won't say it doesn't get fingerprints, but they are practically invisible. After a day or two using it intensely, if I look closely, I can perhaps distinguish some light smudges. I wipe those with a microfiber/polish cloth and that's it.
I bought this color because I knew there would be fingerprints on Midnight, there were plenty of posts about it, and knowing myself, I prefer to avoid having to clean my laptop convulsively over the next 5 years or so.

Besides, Starlight is a gorgeous color. Perhaps not so much dropdead-gorgeous as Midnight, but still, very elegant and discreet. Somewhere between silver and gold. It's a silver with a very light and delicate gold tint.

mba_starlight_sep22_1.jpgmba_starlight_sep22_2.jpgmba_starlight_sep22_3.jpg
 
Last edited:
My new work computer form Dell is darkly colored and suffers no fingerprints at all. It's got a sort of fake carbon fiber looking exterior. I wonder how they get away without fingerprints.

That won't last. I have an XPS with dark outside and the carbon fiber palmrest and funk builds up just the same with use.
 
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.