Among the raft of PC announcements at CES 2024, LG unveiled two new laptops in its super-light Gram Pro line as well as a 39-inch OLED Ultra Gear gaming monitor.
As you can see in the video above, we were able to check out these products up close at CES, which is especially relevant here. The new LG Gram Pro laptops need to be held to be believed, with the 16-inch model weighing just 2.64 pounds—not to mention that OLED must be appreciated in person. Watch above for a rundown, and find deeper details below.
Gram Pro Goes Lighter in Weight, Deeper in Color
We’ve seen many iterations of the LG Gram laptop over the years, and the weight never fails to amaze. Particularly at the 17-inch size, it doesn’t seem like a functional laptop should be able to feel so light, but if that is one of your priorities while shopping, it’s difficult to do better. The most recent model we reviewed weighs just 3.2 pounds at 17 inches—unmatched in the field.
That last model is a “Pro” version of the Gram line, too, but the CES 2024 units take on different forms. These are the LG Gram Pro, which comes in 16- and 17-inch sizes, and the LG Gram Pro 2-in-1. Despite the obvious design differences between the two—the 2-in-1 model can of course convert into a tablet—you'll notice a shared philosophy and feature set in these updates.
(Credit: Brian Westover)One is the even-further trimming down: Whereas the 16-incher weighs just over 2.6 pounds, the 17-inch Gram Pro weighs only 2.86 pounds, down noticeably from the already light 3.2-pound 2023 model. Hybrid laptops are inherently heftier than their clamshell counterparts, but even here, the Gram Pro 2-in-1 weighs just 3.08 pounds.
More advanced displays are also a highlight here. The 16-inch Gram Pro and the Gram 2-in-1 (also a 16-inch screen) have options for high-resolution (2,880-by-1,800) OLED panels with 120Hz refresh rates, though the 17-inch model has no such option. The base screens for all three are 2,560-by-1,600-pixel LCD panels with 144Hz refresh rates.
Connectivity is almost as important in making a “pro” laptop, and all three are well equipped. Across all models, you will find two USB Type-A ports, two USB Type-C connections (with power delivery, DisplayPort, and Thunderbolt 4 support), and an HDMI connection. The laptops also feature a 1080p IR webcam, support for Dolby Atmos, and compatibility with the LG Gram Link app for Windows-to-Android and Windows-to-iOS communication and mirroring.
Intel Core Ultra 'Meteor Lake' Touches Down
As for what powers these systems, LG kept it straightforward on the processor side: The 16- and 17-inch Gram Pro, and the Gram Pro 2-in-1, will all run Intel’s new Core Ultra “Meteor Lake” chips. Core Ultra 5 and Ultra 7 processors will be available, and the laptops can all be equipped with up to 32GB of memory, and SSDs up to 1TB of total storage.
(Credit: Brian Westover)The calling card of the Meteor Lake chips is the onboard neural processing unit (or NPU), which handles AI workloads locally so the CPU can continue to handle the main application tasks. In addition to universal Windows features like Studio Effects, laptop makers are finding their own ways to integrate local AI into software—the LG Gram Link app has integrated AI function to categorize photos and search photos with keywords, for example.
The GPU side has more of a split with the convertible model. The 2-in-1 are fitted with integrated Intel Arc graphics only, while the 16- and 17-inch Gram Pro can run on Intel Arc or with a discrete Nvidia GeForce RTX 3050 GPU. That provides a bit of oomph to professional users who need graphics horsepower in addition to some processing muscle and AI assistance.
Ultra-wide Smiles for Enthusiast Gamers
Last but not least, and certainly the largest, is the 39-inch OLED Ultra Gear gaming monitor. This is a curved panel (800R curve) with a 21:9 aspect ratio and ultra-wide quad-HD (at this size meaning 3,440 by 1,440 pixels) resolution.
(Credit: Brian Westover)It’s difficult to tell through a video, but the quality in person is well noted. Curved displays are not for everyone, nor are ultra-wides, but some enthusiasts are hungry for this type of high-end panel. Combining the size with OLED—in the past tied to a lower refresh rate but here capped at a speedy 240Hz—is an appealing package.
Further details on availability and pricing on all of these products is still to come. Come back to PCMag for more details and reviews when units become available.