[Nebster]

The matte finish is easier for me to keep nice. I have not experienced any marring in the matte finished product.

Good to hear. I have a matte-finish wood veneer desk surface that shows a lot of wear -- and, to be fair, it gets a lot of wear in some areas, because it's a desk after all. I suspect different materials also wear pretty differently, and you/Newell may be making better choices.