Review: LG Gram SuperSlim

I fell in love with the LG Gram SuperSlim the moment I laid eyes upon it. It’s impossibly thin—just 15 millimeters thick including the elevating standoffs underneath the chassis—and just 2.2 pounds in weight. All while sporting an ultrabright 15.6-inch screen, a size that normally demands bones that will weigh you down 4 pounds or more. In all seriousness, this machine feels like it is brushing up against the terminus of how portable a laptop can physically get.

It’s a computer that really invites you to work in multiple windows and spread out while you’re using it—so much so that there’s room for a numeric keypad on the right side of the keyboard. This can take a little getting used to, as the delete and backspace keys require some retraining of muscle memory, but if spreadsheets are on the docket, it’s a real timesaver.

Photograph: LG

The slim profile means keyboard travel is quite limited, but years of tapping on phone screens have made limited-feedback touch-typing like this less of an issue than it might have been in years past. The smallish touchpad may be either a pro or a con depending on your point of view. I found it a touch on the small side but was happy that I wasn’t accidentally rubbing it with my palm all the time, sending wayward taps to Windows.

On paper, the specs are solid: a 2.2-GHz Intel Core i7-1360P processor, a whopping 32 GB of RAM, and 2 terabytes of solid-state drive storage. There are three models of the SuperSlim, and the only differences are the amount of RAM and storage—all three use the same CPU. I tested the highest-level tier, formally denoted as model number 15Z90RT-K.ADB9U1. Whew. This configuration retails for $2,000.

Photograph: LG

Here’s the point where my love began to fade. I knew some compromises must have been made to get this computer down to its flyweight stature, but I was shocked when I finally saw the Gram’s middling performance scores. On business apps, the unit scored lower than the $700 Asus Zenbook 14 I tested, and it didn't do much better on graphics performance, using its integrated chip to eke out frame rates that might have been impressive four years ago.

On the plus side, I managed just over 10 hours out of the Gram’s battery on a full-brightness YouTube playback, which is impressive considering the luminosity of the screen. Another huge bonus is the whisper-quiet fan, as even under load it barely registers more than a mild hiss.

Expansion ports are straightforward: three USB-C ports and that’s it. (One of those is used for charging the device; two of them support DisplayPort and Thunderbolt 4.) Oddly, you’ll find a USB-C to Ethernet adapter in the box, should you need to connect via a hardline.

Photograph: LG

There is also the matter of the price: $2,000 in this configuration, $1,700 for the entry-level model with 16 GB of RAM and a 512-GB SSD. That is a phenomenal price for a unit that, unfortunately, simply feels like it’s dragging its feet—especially if it needs to rely on some graphics operations. Not to mention the 1,920 x 1,080-pixel resolution (with no touchscreen option) is lower than expected—particularly for a display this physically large—and the keyboard backlighting feels a bit dim (even at its highest setting). The audio quality is somewhat tinny and average at best.

In relatively casual use (and when toting it in a backpack), the laptop really shines, but when you need power, it’s late to the party. Ultimately I worry that, given so much incredible promise with the LG Gram SuperSlim, perhaps my expectations were overly inflated. Then again, considering the price, they surely feel more than justified.