I considered Hardie for my garage but I saw so many problems with installs, and the more I looked at it, the more I thought the patterns looked cheesy. Plus for one guy working with it, it is heavy(cement board) and you need a diamond saw, and it is messy. Just overall didn't look like something I wanted to deal with.
So then I heard of this stuff called LP Smartside, which is basically chipboard, but they treat each individual chip with anti rot stuff before gluing together, and it then gets a wood pattern on the outside. I think the pattern looks waaay better than Hardie Board. Anyway it was light enough I could install the 16 foot boards myself(Hardie only comes in 12), it's easily paint-able, easy to work with and looks great.
It's actually the stuff most installers use for trim with Hardie, you can see samples at the big box stores called Smart Trim. It's the same stuff, just in trim format.
Now, I couldn't find anywhere except Monarch Siding in Calgary to supply it, so that's where I got it. But a few months ago I did see a sample pannel at Rona Edmonton Trail, so maybe they have it now. The other very similar prduct is called Canexel, my neighbors used it on one side. It is just as good in my opinion, but comes in pre-painted colours and costs about 1/3 more. But maybe you save that in paint.
Anyway, if you can't find a sample to look at, you could come see my garage...
I'll be doing my house to match when I have time.
Oh, and for those worried about rot because it is similar to chip board, I left a scrap in water for several months, and it only showed extremely minor signs of swelling. No worries at all if it can survive that.