Without manufacturer revealing the composition, we can’t point to a specific material. But it’s not a secret why it’s soft to touch: raised level of plasticizers. And this is also why many of these surfaces get sticky with time: plasticizers migrate towards surface. Cleaning with IPA helps, but that’s only shifting the problem in time and may damage the surface.
I don’t know why anybody finds this kind of finish attractive. Maybe gives the “quality feel”, but I know no research supporting this.
Thanks to
influencers, people like i-justine or LTT for example
... I found the laptop attractive "
on the paper" of some Video on Youtube, as it was described as "
the Maserati of laptops" (3), and the keyboard is really nice, but ummm ...
paid only 600 euros for it, found second hand, it is a 2017 version, I don't know the generation, but it is an intel-i7-something with 16GB of ram and 32GB SSD, the LCD display is not premium, but rather the basic version
... not too bad for the money, but it's definitively not a "
Maserati", perhaps a Chinese Car that pretends to be a Maserati by showing nothing bu Eco-Leather(1) seats that are neither
Polyurethane nor
Polyvinyl Chloride but rather some
secret junk material that gives the "
feeling of quality" of attractive appearance, when they are chemically unstable, not made to last more than 4 years(2), and very polluting.
(1) Eco-leather is a sustainable, environmentally-friendly answer to traditional animal leather. The truest form of Eco-Leather is made from vegan materials that mimic the feel and look of real leather. Two of the most popular are
- PVC (Polyvinyl Chloride)
it is made from fabric leather backing, topped with a foam layer, then skin layer, and finally, finished with a plastic surface coating.
- PU (Polyurethane)
It can be fabricated with sustainable eco-friendly materials, such as bio-polyoil to create a soft, durable alternative to real leather. It even wrinkles and feels just like natural leather. Plus, it uses no plastics and does not create dioxins, so it’s technically one of the greenest forms of eco-leather. Aside from all the environmental pluses of PU, you really can’t beat how supple, soft, and strong it is. Most consumers can’t even tell the difference between PU and animal leather at first touch. It’s wearable, luxurious, and guilt-free.
(2) PVC is commonly used for upholstery and other leather pieces that are prone to nicks and stains.
Technically, it boasts a multi-layered structure, which means it is a lot more durable than PU leather.
(3) a sentence like this - "
the Maserati of Laptops" - has a lot of impact on psychology.
Marketing is based on approaches of this type, to convince you of quality that sometimes isn't there.