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The LG Gram 17 ($1,700) is caught between worlds. With a 17-inch screen, it has an enormous footprint, but at the same time it’s uncannily thin and weighs less than three pounds. That lightweight design lends itself to portability, but the 17-inch frame, no matter how light, is far from convenient to travel with. Similarly, the LG Gram 17 is packed with premium guts — a beautiful display, Intel’s latest Whiskey Lake processor, 16GB of RAM, a full compliment of various ports — but it’s missing a dedicated GPU, making it all but useless for high-end gaming, which is one of the few good excuses for splurging on a screen so large. So, who exactly is this thing for?
The Good: The Gram 17 has a lot going for it on paper and on your desk. It’s huge, bright, colorful display has lots of real-estate for spreadsheets at the office, or Netflix on the road. It has a tremendous battery life, up to 15 hours between charges depending on how hard you’re pushing it. It’s 8th generation Intel Core i7 processor has a good amount of horsepower, not that you’ll need a whole ton of it in day-to-day life. Its good variety of ports means you can live life dongle-free, which makes up for some of its bulk if you’re going to take it on a trip. And if you’re looking to game, and external GPU is always an option.
Who It’s For: Anybody looking for ultrabook laptop with a huge screen, great battery life and a lightweight design. Travelers who are more concerned about weight than volume. Folks who wish they could throw two full screens in a suitcase. But the lack of a GPU means it’s probably not a good pick for gamers or video editors who might be enticed by the rest of the package.
