LG Gram 16 (2022) Review
A remarkably light 16-inch laptop
Verdict
The LG Gram 16 (2022) is a wonderful laptop, featuring a lovely 16-inch panel as well as an ultra-portable design that’s easy to stow away in a bag. There have been a couple of compromises to achieve this feat, such as a throttled performance and a questionable build quality, but such flaws are easy to overlook when you can carry this large laptop to work without breaking your back.
Pros
- Unbelievably light design
- Big, bold and beautiful display
- Excellent port selection
- Super speedy SSD
Cons
- Not as fast as other modern laptops
- Shorter battery life than predecessor
- Noticeable deck flex
Availability
- UKRRP: £1349.98
- USARRP: $1599.99
Key Features
- Big 16-inch screen:Features a 16-inch panel with plenty of screen space, and a high 2560 x 1600 resolution.
- Ultra-portable design:The LG Gram 16 weighs even lighter than a MacBook Air with a weight of 1.199kg.
- 12th Gen Intel Core Processor:Packs Intel’s latest processor for a speedier performance than its predecessors.
Introduction
A big screen or a lightweight design – you usually have to choose one or the other when purchasing a new laptop. But the LG Gram 16 2022 somehow manages to offer both benefits simultaneously.
Despite having a huge 16-inch screen, LG’s laptop only weighs 1.199kg, making it even lighter than the 13-inch Dell XPS 13 and Apple’s MacBook Air.
LG has built up a reputation for launching impressive lightweight laptops, but the most exciting feature of the new 2022 iteration for the LG Gram 16 is the inclusion of the cutting-edge Intel Core 12th Generation processor.
But is the combination of a lightweight design and Intel’s latest chip enough to make the LG Gram 16 (2022) one of the best laptop options currently available? Here are my thoughts.
Design
- Shockingly lightweight design
- Flimsy build quality
- Superb selection of ports
It’s hard to believe how light the LG Gram 16 truly is until you pick it up for yourself. I always enjoy handing the laptop over to a new person to see them gawp in wonder at the lightweight build.
I love being able to slide this laptop into a bag without the worry of it weighing me down or causing back pains. It’s even convenient for when I’m called into a meeting room at the office, as I can comfortably hold this laptop in one hand while pushing doors open with the other. That wouldn’t be so easy with other 17-inch laptops such as the 2.4kg Dell XPS 17.
LG needed to use a magnesium alloy for the construction of the laptop to achieve this lightweight form. There are drawbacks to this, as the laptop’s deck will flex inwards when pressed down. This is particularly noticeable if you like to hammer the keyboard with force.
Following my experience both with this model and previous iterations, I’m not concerned about the build quality – it should be robust enough for on-the-go working without risk of damage. But you can still nevertheless find similarly priced laptops that not only feel sturdier but look better too, just as long as you’re happy for a considerably heavier portable.
My biggest issue with the design is that it can look grimy after extended use. There’s a greasy thumbprint in the bottom-corner of my review sample, where I’ve pressed down while carrying the laptop. And there are numerous marks on the lid to prevent it from looking as shiny and polished as other premium laptops. You can of course clean it up easily with frequent wipes with a cloth, but it’s still something to bear in mind.
The LG Gram 16 has an excellent selection of ports, with connections for USB-C (with Thunderbolt 4 support), USB-A, HDMI, Micro SD and a headphone jack. You can’t get much better than that, especially since it means you don’t need to bother carrying around a dongle.
There’s a Full HD webcam nestled in the top screen bezel that offers decent video capture. The feed looks a little grainy if you look closely enough, but it’s still perfectly fine for video chats. Windows Hello is also supported, enabling you to use facial recognition to log into the laptop. LG has included a ‘Secure Key’ shortcut on the keyboard, which allows you to disable both the camera and microphone. A green LED light will also notify you when the camera is turned on, which is a thoughtful inclusion.
I enjoy typing on the LG Gram 16’s keyboard, with deeper presses than most other laptops I’ve reviewed. Each key is also chunky enough to avoid frequent typos. The single-row return key can prove annoying for those with strong muscle memory for other keyboard layouts, but that’s something you can overcome given enough time.
The trackpad is great too, proving to be both spacious and smooth enough for a seamless experience.
Screen
- Big screen is great for multitasking
- Sharp QHD resolution
- Amazing colour coverage
One of the LG Gram 16’s best features is its large 16-inch screen. Having such a big panel makes it easier to multitask with multiple windows open simultaneously, and it improved my workflow considerably. I also appreciated it when watching TV shows on Netflix and the like.
LG isn’t relying solely on size either, as it’s also opted for a super-sharp 2560 x 1600 resolution, adding more detail to images and video than the standard 1080p laptop screen. The 16:10 aspect ratio also ensures lots of vertical space which is really handy for viewing web pages and spreadsheets.
I used a colorimeter to get a better look at the screen specs here, and I was really impressed. An above-average brightness and a competent ability to display dark blacks result in a great contrast of 1297:1. You will admittedly get more vibrant displays from OLED laptops – such as the Dell XPS 13 OLED and Asus Zenbook S 13 OLED – but this is still a perfectly decent result for high-quality video streaming.
I was even more impressed by the Gram’s colour coverage: it scored 99.8% for sRGB, 84% for Adobe RGB and 97% for DCI-P3. This means that the LG Gram 16 is capable of producing a wide range of colours, ensuring that on-screen photos and videos look true to form. This is especially important for professionals with colour-sensitive edits.
The LG Gram misses out on more luxurious features such as a touchscreen, plus 60Hz refresh rate and OLED technology, but I think it would be unfair to ask for extras at this price point. It’s just great to see LG nail the basics and offer a wonderfully big, colourful and sharp display.
Performance
- Features Intel’s 12 Gen chip
- Not as fast as other modern laptops
- Impressively speedy SSD
The new model of the LG Gram 2022 has been upgraded with Intel’s new 12th Gen Intel Core processor – my review model has the Intel Core i7-1260P to be exact.
That’s a supremely speedy chip for productivity tasks, with our benchmark results showing it to be even faster than the M1 chip inside the MacBook Air. There are signs of potential throttling since it can’t quite match the Samsung Galaxy Book Pro 360 2, despite sharing the same chip. But that shouldn’t really be an issue, especially if you plan on sticking to day-to-day productivity workloads.
| LG Gram 16 (2022) | Huawei MateBook D 16 (2022) | Samsung Galaxy Book Pro 360 2 | |
| Processor | Intel Core i7-1260P | Intel Core i7-12700H | Intel Core i7-1260P |
| PCMark 10 | 5222 | 5621 | 5418 |
| Geekbench 5 single/multi | 1622 / 8234 | 1775 / 11,216 | 1703 / 9178 |
| 3DMark Time Spy | 1363 | 1916 | 1745 |
The Intel chip also flaunts an impressive integrated graphics performance. You won’t be able to play modern games with max graphics settings, but it’s still capable of casual gaming and content creation. But due to the throttling issues, you can find other productivity laptops with a better performance in this regard.
The one area the LG Gram 16 really excels in is its SSD speeds: it achieved 6514MB/s read speeds and write 4898MB/s speeds during testing. That’s twice as fast as some of the other laptops I’ve reviewed recently, including the Samsung Galaxy Book Pro 360 2.
This means the Gram is capable of installing and loading files on the physical drive at lightning speeds. This is useful for everything from booting up to opening your favourite downloaded apps. The base storage capacity is decent enough at 512GB too, while there’s also the option to go for the more spacious 1TB SSD.
Battery life
- Downgraded battery compared to predecessor
- Lasts just shy of 11 hours
The LG Gram 16 2022 has seen a big performance upgrade compared to its predecessor, but Intel has seemingly made a compromise for its new chips as battery life has seen a downgrade.
During our benchmark test, where we reduce brightness down to 150 nits and run the PCMark 10 office benchmark, the Gram only lasted 10 hours and 53 minutes. That’s certainly not a bad result, and is about average compared to other productivity portables despite its inclusion of the 16-inch screen.
However, the 2021 model of the LG Gram 16 achieved a battery life score of 15 hours and 10 minutes, which is considerably longer stamina. Is this a major issue? I don’t think so, as 10 hours is still more than good enough to outlast the working day. But it may well make you tempted to opt for the older iteration, despite having a slower performance.
Just like its predecessor, the LG Gram 16 2022’s charger uses Thunderbolt 4 rather than a proprietary connection. I’m a big fan of laptops adopting universal power ports, and it means you can use one cable for multiple devices which is great for both convenience and the environment.
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Should you buy it?
If you want a portable big-screen laptop:
The biggest appeal of the LG Gram 16 is the fact it has a large 16-inch screen despite weighing less than a MacBook Air. If you reckon having a big display will help with your workflow, the LG Gram 16 is my top recommendation.
If you want the very best performance and battery life:
In order to create such a lightweight build, LG has been forced to make compromises to the performance. You can find faster laptops elsewhere, while portables with an AMD chip are recommended if battery life is your priority.
Final Thoughts
Having a big 16-inch screen is incredibly useful, allowing you to multitask with more ease, or even to have a better experience watching Netflix or Disney Plus. The LG Gram 16 is one of the best 16-inch laptops you can buy for productivity workloads, especially thanks to its ultra-portable design that allows for frequent commutes to the office.
A starting price of £1349.98 is great value considering the specs, with a high screen resolution, speedy SSDs and the latest chip from Intel. You can find faster laptops elsewhere, but you’d only need more power if you want to game or edit video.
How we test
Every laptop we review goes through a series of uniform checks designed to gauge key things including build quality, performance, screen quality and battery life.
These include formal synthetic benchmarks and scripted tests, plus a series of real-world checks, such as how well it runs popular apps.
We used as our main laptop for at least a week.
Tested the performance via both benchmark tests and real-world use.
We tested the screen with a colorimeter and real-world use.
We tested the battery with a benchmark test and real-world use.
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FAQs
No, you’ll need to purchase a 2-in-1 version of the LG Gram for a touchscreen.
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As part of this mission, whenever we review a product we send the company a series of questions to help us gauge and make transparent the impact the device has on the environment.
We currently haven’t received answers to the questions on this product, but will update this page the moment we do. You can see a detailed breakdown of the questions we ask and why in our sustainability info page.
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GPU
The graphics processing unit is designed to render graphics, which is particularly important for gaming, creating 3D models and editing video.
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We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
