There are some other options- Hardi or other fiber cement, Miratec, and PVC. As with most things, the more you pay, the nicer it is. We went with Miratec for fascia, which some kind of an engineered wood product. It's textured to look like wood grain. Time will tell how it holds up. Our soffits are Hardi panel, with vents added. I felt the perforated Hardi wouldn't look as authentic with our craftsman style house.

We're using Hardi trim boards, which I got a great deal on, to go with our Hardi siding, which we got an even better deal on. We wanted all paintable surfaces, as we're fussy about color, and didn't want to be locked into one color forever. Some of these materials are fairly fire proof as well, especially the Hardi fiber cement products.

I second hardiboard. It looks great and is pretty much maintenance free!