One of the reasons why computer manufacturers are slow in adopting ultrabooks, even though they want to, is due to the costs of manufacturing. Now in order to reduce the costs of manufacturing and hopefully find a way to undercut Apple’s MacBook Air, Digitimes has reported that both Acer and ASUS are turning to an alternative material to be used as the casing of their ultrabooks.
If the reports are to be believed, Acer and ASUS will both be turning to fiberglass as their material of choice for the casings of their ultrabook offerings. Both Acer and ASUS are said to be sourcing their fiberglass from Mitac Precision Technology.
The reason behind going the fiberglass route as opposed to an aluminum unibody like the MacBook Air, is because it’s apparently $5-10 cheaper than the aluminum alloy material, and will save both companies up to $20 for a whole ultrabook, or so Digitimes’s sources are saying.
While both companies have aluminum-shelled ultrabooks in the works and to be launched soon, Acer is said to launch their 15” fiberglass model in 2012. No word on when we will be able to expect ASUS’s fiberglass offerings.
Filed in . Read more about Acer, Asus, Digitimes, Portable and Ultrabooks.