LG Makes U.S. Laptop Debut With LG Gram Laptops
LG is breaking new ground with a set of devices, specifically the company's debut of LG Gram laptops in the United States. The LG Gram comes in 13- and 14-inch variations.
The big attraction is that these laptops are light in weight at 2.16 pounds. That puts them in direct competition with the lightweight Chromebooks, but the LG Gram laptops use Windows 10 as the operating system instead of Chrome OS. Unfortunately, it's an expensive device with the 13-inch version starting at $899.99.
| LG Gram | 13-inch (13Z950-A.AA3WU1) | 14-inch (14Z950-A.AA3GU1) | 14-inch (14Z950-A.AA4GU1) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Screen Size | 13.3 inches (1920 x 1080) | 14 inches (1920 x 1080) | 14 inches (1920 x 1080) |
| CPU | Intel Core i5-5200U(2.2 GHz, 2.7 GHz Turbo) | Intel Core i5-5200U(2.2 GHz, 2.7 GHz Turbo) | Intel i7-5500U(2.4 GHz, 3.0 GHz Turbo) |
| RAM | 8 GB x 1, DDR3L (1600 MHz) | 8 GB x 1, DDR3L (1600 MHz) | 8 GB x 1, DDR3L (1600 MHz) |
| Graphics | Intel HD Graphics 5500 | Intel HD Graphics 5500 | Intel HD Graphics 5500 |
| Storage | 128 GB SSD | 128 GB SSD | 256 GB SSD |
| I/O | - HDMI- USB 3.0 x 2- Micro-SD/SDXC card slot- Audio jack- 1.3 megapixel HD webcam | - HDMI- USB 3.0 x 2 - Micro-SD/SDXC card slot - Audio jack - 1.3 megapixel HD webcam | - HDMI- USB 3.0 x 2 - Micro-SD/SDXC card slot - Audio jack - 1.3 megapixel HD webcam |
| Connectivity | - 802.11 agn/ac Wi-Fi - Ethernet - Bluetooth 4.0 (low energy) | - 802.11 agn/ac Wi-Fi - Ethernet - Bluetooth 4.0 (low energy) | - 802.11 agn/ac Wi-Fi - Ethernet - Bluetooth 4.0 (low energy) |
| Dimensions | 11.9 x 8.4 x 0.5 in (WHD) 2.16 lbs | 12.8 x 8.9 x 0.5 in (WHD) 2.16 lbs | 12.8 x 8.9 x 0.5 in (WHD) 2.16 lbs |
| Battery | up to 7.5 hours | up to 7.5 hours | up to 7.5 hours |
| OS | Windows 10 Home | Windows 10 Home | Windows 10 Home |
| Price | $899.99 | $999.99 | $1,399.99 |
Earlier this month, our own Seth Colaner wrote about the start of the market war between Chromebooks and Windows devices and the rise of cheap Windows notebooks. Companies like Acer, HP and Lenovo make both Chromebooks and Windows notebooks. The hope is that consumers will want to buy a cheap notebook with Microsoft's new operating system. However, these are low-powered laptops, and the performance of Windows 10 will not be the same as the operating system on a more powerful desktop.
LG, on the other hand, didn't skimp on power with its Intel Core i5-5200U, which will make users happy when it comes to performance with Windows 10. However, power comes with price, as MacBook Air users know all too well (the 11-inch MacBook Air starts at $899). If anything, LG is bypassing the other cheap Windows notebook companies and going straight for Apple, with the hope that its first laptop offerings add more attractive options in the high-price range.
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Rexly Peñaflorida is a freelance writer for Tom's Hardware covering topics such as computer hardware, video games, and general technology news.
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SteelCity1981 for that much I would think it would come with skylake esp on a new laptop series and not use broadwell.Reply -
Azn Cracker Seems like its competition for MacBook Air rather than chromebooks since most of them are 1/3 the price or lessReply -
HideOut I think theres a weight error on the 13" model. Its show as exact same as larger ones.Reply
And there needs to be a model with the 5200 CPU but with the larger 256gb SSD. Thats the sweet spot. -
zzzxtreme I really really want the next surface / or some other comparable hybrids to sport 2 high-speed micros slots and upgradeable to 16GB RAM.Reply -
Sunderas Nice entry from LG in a very competitive area of the market. This will probably help bring prices down.Reply -
Chris Droste i would like at least Intel Iris graphics on a mobile chip. I understand the business segment doesn't care but can we for ONCE have a light, efficient gamer-focused laptop? like some special brew i3-6390U w/IrisPRO in a 13/14" 1080p IPS screen? or i5-6510U (deactivated graphics?) w/ GTX 980M? lets see some creativity in the segment instead of thin/light/surf your email or big/heavy/gamer&proGraphics tank!Reply -
Sunderas Reply16701806 said:i would like at least Intel Iris graphics on a mobile chip. I understand the business segment doesn't care but can we for ONCE have a light, efficient gamer-focused laptop? like some special brew i3-6390U w/IrisPRO in a 13/14" 1080p IPS screen? or i5-6510U (deactivated graphics?) w/ GTX 980M? lets see some creativity in the segment instead of thin/light/surf your email or big/heavy/gamer&proGraphics tank!
That would be nice, but usually laptop makers imho are under-engineering the cooling capabilities that are needed. Unless they start to pair with decent gpus that don't think they are space heaters it will always be thin and crappy, or powerful but gargantuan. I have a 970M and that thing is better than a heater. All latest drivers and the thing still heats up like a frying pan...