LG’s Lightweight Gram 17-Inch Laptop Gets Intel’s Ice Lake CPU
by Anton Shilov on December 12, 2019 8:00 AM ESTThin-and-light notebooks with a 17-inch display are rather rare, as most 17-inch laptops are intended to be high performance desktop replacement-class machines. LG’s gram 17 has been a stand-out in that respect, targeting users seeking primarily for a sleek and lightweight PC. This week LG has introduced an updated gram 17 that retains its thin-and-light form-factor, but improves on its predecessor in almost every way possible when it comes to performance.
The new LG gram 17 comes in the company’s signature white or grey chassis made of carbon magnesium alloy that is only 17.4 mm thick. The laptop weighs 1.35 kilograms (2.98 pounds), which is in-line with the weight of a typical 13-incher, yet packs a 17.3-inch IPS display with a 2560×1600 resolution.
Inside the updated LG gram 17 notebook is Intel’s 10th Generation Core processor (Ice Lake) with up to Iris Plus Graphics. This is paired with up to 24 GB of DDR4-3200 memory as well as up to two M.2 NVMe SSDs. To cool down the high-end CPU, the manufacturer equipped its system with its Mega Cooling System, though we do not know peculiarities. By using a processor with a beefy integrated GPU and installing up to 24 GB of memory along with up to two PCIe SSDs, LG clearly makes its 2020 gram 17 a lot more powerful than its Core i7-8565U based predecessor.
As far as connectivity is concerned, the 2020 LG gram 17 is equipped with Wi-Fi 6 and Bluetooth 5 for wireless comms. In addition, it has a Thunderbolt 3 port, three USB 3.1 ports, an HDMI output, a microSD/UFS slot, and a 3.5-mm audio jack for headsets. When it comes to multimedia features, the notebook has a webcam, DTX X Ultra-badged speakers, and a microphone array. Last but not least, the laptop has a fingerprint reader.
LG’s new gram 17 laptop comes with a rather massive 80-Wh battery and while the manufacturer does not publish specific battery life figures, paired with an Ice Lake-U chip it should be enough for at least a day.
Specifications of the 2020 LG gram 17 | ||
17Z90N different products will offer different configs |
||
LCD | Diagonal | 17.3" |
Resolution | Brightness | Features | 2560×1600, IPS Wide viewing angles |
|
Color Gamut | 96% sRGB | |
Touch Support | ? | |
Protective Glass | ? | |
CPU | 10th Generation Intel Core | |
Graphics | UHD Graphics or Iris Plus Graphics | |
RAM | up to 24 GB DDR4-3200 (onboard + SO-DIMM) | |
Storage | two M.2 NVMe SSDs | |
Wireless: Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, LTE, NFC, and GPS options | Wi-Fi 6 + Bluetooth | |
USB | Type-A | 3 × USB 3.1 |
Type-C | 1 × USB 3.1 Gen 1 (via TB3) | |
Thunderbolt | 1 × Thunderbolt | |
Card Reader | microSD/UFS | |
Camera | Front | Webcam |
Fingerprint Sensor | Yes | |
Other I/O | Microphone, stereo speakers, TRRS audio jack | |
Other Sensors | ? | |
Battery | 80 Wh | |
Dimensions | Width | 380.6 mm | 14.98 inches |
Depth | 262.6 mm | 10.34 inches | |
Thickness | 17.4 mm | 0.69 inches | |
Weight | 1.35 kilograms | 2.98 pounds | |
Launch Price | ? |
LG will start sales of its next-generation gram 17 notebook sometimes in early 2020. Expect to see the company reveal more about the laptop at CES.
Related Reading:
- Best Gaming Laptops: Holiday 2019
- LG Releases Gram 17 Laptop: An Ultra-Thin Notebook with a 17.3-Inch Display
- LG Gram 2018 Laptops Unveiled: Quad-Core i5/i7, TB3, ~2.2 Lbs, 22 Hrs
- Razer Unveils New Blade Stealth 13: Quad-Core Whiskey Lake, dGPU, 4K UHD
- ASUS Unveils Ultra-Thin ZenBook Pro 15 with Six-Core Core i9, GTX 1050, Calibrated 4K LCD
Source: LG
32 Comments
View All Comments
bernstein - Saturday, January 4, 2020 - link
Product page is now live : https://www.lg.com/us/laptops/lg-17z90n-r.aas9u1-u...Intel® Core™ i7-1065G7 with 16GB RAM and 2x 512GB SSD
kylef - Saturday, March 21, 2020 - link
I have a Gram 17. My favorite feature is the light weight, obviously. But there are several compromises. 1) The keyboard is really awful... poor tactile response and lots of missing keystrokes. 2) No ethernet port (only a USB ethernet adapter). 3) LG Webcam occasionally causes the system process to spike CPU consumption and sends the fan into overdrive, even when you're not using it; had to disable the webcam to stop that behavior (which also helped battery life).