What's the difference? Here's the quick rundown of what exactly distinguishes one from another.

If watching is more your thing, Art Director Lawdogg breaks it down for you in the Travel Tripod Setup video. 

1. Weight

The aluminum alloy weighs to be about 3.44 pounds/1.56kg.

The carbon fiber weighs about 2.81 pounds/1.29 kg. 

Carbon fiber is lighter to carry when on the go.

2. Parts

The difference in materials occurs in the leg sections.

Both models have the same materials on all the other components, such as the center column, compact ball head, cam levers, hub section, etc.

3. Performance 

Our Carbon Fiber Travel Tripod is about 20% more stable than our Aluminum Travel Tripod.

The difference is not noticeable by handling the tripods, but in certain situations it could be noticeable through shooting. The carbon fiber model will let you obtain sharp images in 20% faster wind speeds, or using a 20% longer focal length. The camera will move 20% less when you press the shutter button.

All that is to say that carbon is a little stiffer than aluminum, and can be pushed to slightly further limits before you notice loss in image quality.

For a more in-depth look at stability, check out Testing the Travel Tripod for Stability and Weight Capacity