The only thing I don't like about the crinkle finish is not something that is "wrong" with it, but something cultural I can't get out of my head: no matter what you do with/to them, crinkle finishes look *cheap*.
A smooth black finish or, better, a matt black finish looks mysterious, it asks compelling questions, especially where the immediate function of the object isn't known. A matt black *product* makes whoever sees it wonder first, "is it dangerous?" and second, "is it expensive--what kind of trouble would it cause if I dropped this?"
Think about Cameras, in today's world of digital cameras, once you go above a certain price point, black becomes the norm, black says "expensive professional equipment that requires no adornment" and its a rule you see in every piece of photographic equipment with the exception of a few high-end, Canon lenses.
When all is said and done, the reason to choose one over the other is the impression it makes on others when you're standing outside a bar and a girl asks, 'what's that'. With smooth black, it's still mysterious. With the crinkle I saw in the photos, you're going to be handing her something that looks like it escaped from a head-
shop.
I've just been told that it looks a lot better in person. Now I'm even more confused than before.
