Mavic offers several finishes on their Open Pro rims. I own several sets of Open Pros. One is black with machined rims, one has the CD finish, and I have one front wheel with the ceramic coating on the braking surface which I bought because I thought it would have better stopping power. The CD rim is anodized with a ceramic coating over the entire rim, inside and out. The braking surface is machined before the coating is applied so the brown coating is on the braking surface, too. The coating is very hard, and Mavic's literature says it does help to dissipate heat. With any wheel, if the brakes pads have imbedded abrasive materials (impurities in the rubber or sand/dirt from riding in the rain) the braking surface will get scratched. I think that this CD coating on the braking surface would be less susceptible to scratching because it's harder than then base metal. However, when scratched it is very visible because the coating is a diffrent color than the underlying metal. The Open Pro CD with Ceramic is coated the same way as are the normal CDs, but has another, very rough, ceramic coating applied to the braking surface. It makes the braking surface feel like sandpaper. This coating is applied to increase the coefficient of friction when wet. I would think that it would be less susceptible to scratches from impurities imbedded in the pads because of its hardness and extra thickness. But, it can still be scratched (one of mine has a radial scratch from banging it into something while handling the wheel in the garage). I have read that once scratched the ceramic application is susceptible to flaking off. Haven't experienced that yet. They do stop better when dry (normally don't ride in the rain in San Diego). The biggest disadvantage to the ceramic coating is that it is so abrasive it EATS BRAKE PADS at an UNBELIEVABLE rate! Koolstop makes green pads for ceramics which is better, but still goes fast. I am currently running a set of Shimano pads from an old model of cantilever brakes which are very hard. The hardness somewhat compromises the increased stopping power, but at least they will last more than 500 miles! Would recommend the CD coating, but stay away from the ceramic coating unless riding in the rain.