We used cedar impressions vinyl siding and love it for low maintenance and we like the color. Azek trim means no more painting. Only thing it's very expensive so we did it on 3 sides and went with a matching siding on the back side, but it's still good looking, IMO. You can see the difference from the back corner. But we went with different windows as well, so the back side looks more contemporary than the front. But it still goes.

I just posted a long reply on the other Smartside thread here, if you care to read it. I've had very good results with Smartside on my house, but you have a much different climate that me. Are you concerned about wildfires? Hardiplank is fireproof. It's also bug proof. The downside is that the pieces are short at 12'. The edges turn to mush in a matter of a day or two when soaked with water. It shows every bow and dip in your walls. It needs special tools to cut. The advantage of Smartside is that a regular saw will cut it. It's longer at 16'. It's thicker and hides wall defects better and looks like real wood on the wall. It does not fall apart when soaked in water. Downsides is that it's only fire resistant and bugs should not bother it as it is heavily manufactured but it's still wood. I've installed both and I would take Smartside over Hardiplank any day, but Hardiplank has it's advantages also. This post was edited by rmtdoug on Fri, Oct 24, 14 at 1:06

Ive been building for 30 years and have used different brands of fiber board. I have questions presented to me about pros and cons frequently. Since we all have internet access and can research products, it helps compare. What the online comparisons do not tell you is how it really holds up. Lets say you go with a less expensive concrete fiber board and your builder installs it -pre primed but cannot get it painted for two months. If it is rainy where you live-DO NOT DO IT. Moisture will absorb into the fiberboard and thus ruin the pre primed finish and thus void your warranty. The only time you want the LP Smart siding or similar product is if you will get paint on it immediately-never let it get wet until painted, or you just want to save the money upfront and risk the consequences. I have used combinations in some cases at request of owners. When scraps have been thrown into a pile together, by time we cleaned up and hauled off-you can see how the products, other than James Hardi siding-fell apart ( yes-fell apart from moisture). I do not discourage smart siding or similar-just be cautious and handle materials properly. Done right, they are all beautiful.

Sorry, but absurd. Fiber cement siding only runs about 30-35% more than vinyl in materials and from an installation standpoint it is NOT harder. Only siding contractors who are not accustomed to working with fiber cement siding say it is more labor intensive to install. In reality, siding teams that are used to doing fiber cement and have the proper tools like power shears etc. at their disposal can knock that stuff out incredibly fast. There's no j-trim to mess around with, its prefinished, and most brands have proprietary flashing at the siding joints that is easier and faster than lapping vinyl and hand cutting weep holes, and the waterproofing and flashing around window and door penetrations is about the same as vinyl. The siding industry has become so dependent on vinyl that a lot of builders give you a giant upcharge on other products because frankly they just don't want to screw around with it. Vinyl siding is garbage. Do whatever it takes not to have it IMO.