I look forward to this - but I'm disappointed that they're announcing it a year out. The C|net page says they don't intend to launch until next year.

I'm curious about heat removal. Everyone who uses a laptop knows how hot they get, and it would strike me that having materials with lower transfer rates might make the inside overheat.

what if the interior gets wet. wouldnt the cardboard go all soggy and rip?

If the interior gets wet, you probably have other problems...

It's not a cardboard laptop - it's wood. The cardboard, as it says in the caption, is a packaging liner. Presumably to keep the wood finish from being scratched during shipment. Not sure why they decided to show that picture with all the others, since it is kinda confusing to see the cardboard-covered one next to all the wood ones -- which are confusing-looking enough for most people.

Kudos to ASUS, though! I'm very glad to see them taking this step. I for one plan to get one. And I hope to see more of this since I'd like my career to be ecologically sustainable -- so I can keep doing it well into the future. :)

... or maybe it isn't a packaging liner. Looking around at other sites, it looks like it really is an internal lining. Strange, but then I guess I've never gotten any of my laptops wet, anyway ...

I always thought that a wood case would be a nice option, tasteful enough to accent any executive's office. I can't imagine cardboard holding up under any use at all, though. Normal hand movements would cause tremendous wear and even barring the occasional coffee splatter, it's not possible to keep it clean.

i am so pleased to read about this. i have been waiting for a schema in which i can swap out the guts to upgrade. it seems so wasteful to buy a new case every couple years. i hope there becomes an aftermarket for cases & case components that are personal art.

wasnt there something like this in Gibson's "Idoru", made of recycled aluminum &c? was it called "Sandbenders"?

They look great but trying to get the cover off your laptop and fitting it must be a scary thing to do, you could end up in a whole world of pain.

Woodgrain laptops on treehugger.com, i've seen it all. lol.

kill those trees pesky trees, they're breathing all our co2 dammit!

I'll second that gibson reference... i've wanted a sandbenders ever since i read that book. look up the "heirloom pc" as well, another artsy long-term use computer

Don't hold your breath, Christie. Products like this always seem to be disproportionately expensive with a relatively short product-line lifetime - never amounting to much more than a status symbol or conversation piece for the trendy crowd at your local corner cafe. You're much better off tracking down a solid laptop that offers reasonable future-proofing at a price that won't break the bank.

But I'm glad someone else loves Idoru :)

"Aluminum," Chia said. "They melt old cans they dig up on the beach cast it in sand molds."

With a decent lacquer finish it would be as easy enough to keep clean as any other finish

In this instance, the case is bamboo. Bamboo is a grass and harvesting it does not kill the plant, Its a very renewable source of wood. So its not a case of getting the trees. That doesn't address the CO2 issue, of course.

I think companies like Asus showing corporate responsibility to be green is a step in the right direction. The modular build will definitely bring laptops down to the scope of desktop pcs with interchangeable parts. We're due for a new Green Age coming soon...

response to slim says:
If the interior gets wet, you probably have other problems...

Any Laptop that gets wet will have other problems. Doesnt take a genius to point out the obvious.

Pressed straw laptop cases in Bruce Sterling's fiction novel "Distraction"

Arent most external parts of laptops already recycleable? I was under the impression that the problem with electronics is NOT with the external parts, but with the metals and coatings on the internal PC boards and the LCD screans. Plus, now you have a laquer coating on the bamboo, so you still have chemicals.

bamboo does not necessarily need a chemical laquer, shellac is one alternative.......Bamboo Specialists NZ

=v= Some laptops have metal exteriors, which are recyclable, but many more are plastic, which basically isn't. (Plastic recycling is an overhyped misnomer. At best, certain types of plastic are downcycled, though the types used to make laptops generally are not.)

Coll as this looks, I have to wonder, how much does it cost? I can't imagine it being particurly affordable!

---BAMBOO IS NOT WOOD!! --- It is bamboo. Wood generally comes from trees and during its production, by plants, it has a bark covering and includes secondary growth; these are not characteristics of bamboo. Bamboo comes from bamboo; humankind has clasified bamboo as a grass.

I hope this does not make any of you think you can smoke it to get high. Actually the same botanical classification that makes bamboo a grass, says that Canabis sativa (marijuana) is not a grass. We humans are whimsical.

A related matter is that there is also some debate in forestry circles if coconut trees are trees, and if they produce wood.

I've got nuts and produce wood every morning, am I a tree or a grass?

I tested this camera for a client. I didn’t have the light running for more than 15 minutes. The battery lasted approximately 6 hours before recharging. The LCD, however, had a few dead pixels - never saw this before. Tried returning for exchange and had to put up quite a fight. Anyone else seen this? http://www.batteryfast.co.uk