LG Gram 16Z90P Review

If you’re shopping for an ultra-light laptop, here comes the LG Gram 16Z90P review. Also known as the lightweight laptop king (hence the Gram thing), the 16Z90P punches way above its weight (pun intended).

Even if it may be hard to believe given its size, this is basically a desktop replacement that can be carried anywhere, i.e. if you can live with the price tag, which is ample, you’ll end up with a fantastic laptop powered by Intel’s latest mobile CPUs.

Speaking of which, this particular model comes with an 11th gen CORE i7 1165G7 CPU, 16 GB of RAM, 1 TB SSD (!), Alexa built-in if you care about that, and a fantastic 11 hours battery, not to mention a gorgeous 16’’ WQXGA (2560×1600) display.

The cherry on the cake is this: despite its stellar specs and huge 16:10 display (okay, we are exaggerating a little bit for dramatic effect), this laptop weighs less than a 13’’. The only thing that we can complain about is the design, which is a little boring for a laptop from the future, but we’re only cherry-picking.

What is it

The LG Gram is built to maximize screen real estate without sacrificing weight in the process. To give you an idea, this laptop has the same screen size and resolution as a MacBook Pro 16’’, but due to its state-of-the-art magnesium alloy chassis, it weighs an incredible 1.16 kg or 2.6 lb, which is way lighter than the MacBook.

To be more precise, it’s 1.6 lb lighter and this is nothing short of amazing. The 16Z90P is also the latest iteration of the LG Gram, which makes for LG’s ultra-thin and light laptop range. There are also 14’’ and 17’’ variants as well, but the 16’’ hits the sweet spot in our book.

Moreover, the LG Gram 16 (2021) is an Intel Evo-certified laptop, which means it’s the next step in laptop design.

Specs

• CPU: 2.8GHz Intel Core i7-1165G7 (4-core, 12MB Intel Smart Cache, up to 4.7GHz with Turbo Boost)
• Graphics: Intel Iris Xe Graphics
• RAM: 16GB LPDDR4X (4,266MHz)
• Screen: 16-inch WQXGA (2,560 x 1,600) IPS LCD
• Storage: 1TB SSD (PCIe, NVMe, M.2)
• Ports: 2x USB-C with Thunderbolt 4, 2 x USB-A 3.2, 1x HDMI, 1 x microSD card reader, combi audio jack
• Connectivity: Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth 5.0
• Camera: 720p webcam
• Weight: 2.62 pounds (1.18kg)
• Size: 14.01 x 9.58 x 0.66-inches (355.9 x 243.4 x 16.8 mm; W x D x H)

Short Overview

At first sight, and especially after you pick it up for the first time, you’ll be flabbergasted with how light this laptop is. Until you physically hold it, you won’t really comprehend how incredibly light this machine is in real life. The 16’’ screen offers more than enough workspace without becoming too big, and since we’re talking Intel Evo, the Gram works smooth in everyday tasks.

Everything loads instantly, and even Windows 10 boots very fast. Due to its built-in fingerprint sensor, you can log in just by pressing the power button, and we must say that as far as productivity goes, this is a very accomplished laptop, i.e. it’s perfect for productivity-oriented people, or even for students shopping for something cool for school.

The laptop has no less than four Thunderbolt ports, which translates into future-proof cutting-edge support for high-end peripherals and storage. There are plenty other ports though, including full-size HDMI and USB for older devices, which is very nice on LG’s part.

Battery life is another strong point of this laptop, as 11 hours of autonomy is kind of hot for a 16’’ Windows 10 running machine. Speaking of battery life, don’t forget to read our article about how to care for your laptop’s battery.

As we already told you, we only complain about the dull design of this laptop from the future, and the preinstalled bloatware/software, which often spams pop-up messages trying to persuade you into buying nonsense subscriptions.

Design

As the Gram name suggests, this LG laptop’s main selling point is its incredible 2.6 pounds of weight, which makes it arguably the lightest 16’’ machine on the market. As we already told you, the LG Gram is almost half the weight of the Apple MacBook Pro (16’’ 2019 model).

The laptop can be effortlessly carried around in one hand due to its ultra-low weight, and if you carry it in a backpack or a bag, you will forget it’s there. The LG Gram is proof of concept that you don’t have to settle for a 13’’ laptop if you want something feather-light, and that screen size doesn’t matter in terms of overall weight.

The caveat to all these impressive features is the price, but if you can live with that, it doesn’t get any better than the LG Gram. Another thing to contemplate is that despite its lightness, this laptop is far from delicate. The Gram boasts a full metal chassis with impressive torsional rigidity, and passes the MIL-STD-810G military standard for durability.

So, don’t let its lightness full you: this baby is hard as a rock, as it’s built from the same material used by the aircraft industry. You can make spaceships from magnesium alloy, which means the LG Gram can survive drops and knocks, as well as dust, vibrations and high/low temps without breaking a sweat.

The laptop measures 14.01 x 9.58 x 0.66-inches (355.9 x 243.4 x 16.8 mm), i.e. it’s far from being compact, but will fit any bag without issue.

Connectivity is top-notch, including 2x Thunderbolt 4 USB C ports, 2x USB 3.2 and a microSD.

Display

The 16’’ display is also a big selling point for the LG Gram, due to its high resolution, 16:10 aspect ratio and thin bezels. Image quality is awesome, and the 2,56t0 x 1,600 WQXGA resolution panel supports 99% of the DCI-P3 color gamut, which makes it ideal for video editing.

Speaking of which, the laptop meets and exceeds the industry standard used by video editors, which means color reproduction is highly accurate, not only bright and vibrant.

Keyboard

The keyboard is more than adequate for avid typists, i.e. it’s comfortable, ideal in size and has almost perfect key travel; obviously, the keys are backlit, but you can’t change the light color.

Performance

The laptop boasts Intel Evo certification, and performs nicely in daily tasks, such as web browsing, document creation and so on. The 16:10 ratio screen is perfect for portrait documents, even if it’s kind of reflective due to its glossy finish.

Keep in mind that the LG Gram is not designed to be a gaming laptop or a workhorse, but for general use, it’s just awesome. For example, you can perform video editing in 4K resolution with ease, as well as photo editing, which makes this laptop a worthwhile investment for both work and school.

Final word

If you can live with the price tag, this laptop is the best ultra-lightweight machine on the market, easy to carry around, highly portable and packs a lot of heat under the hood so to speak. However, the LG is not suited for gaming, as its integrated graphics cannot deal with modern titles.