With both the LG Gram 16 and MacBook Air M1 both starting at prices of $999, which one is the better of the two?
LG Gram 16 (14-inch, 2021) vs MacBook Air M1. Which One is For You?: At a Glance
Let’s kick off by taking a look at the specs for both the LG Gram 16 and the MacBook Air M1, to get a rough idea of how well they stack up against one another.
Starting with the LG Gram 16.
| CPU | 2.8GHz Intel Core i7-1165G7 (4-core, 12MB Intel Smart Cache, up to 4.7GHz with Turbo Boost) |
| GPU | Intel Iris Xe Graphics |
| RAM | 16GB LPDDR4X (4,266MHz) |
| Screen | 16-inch WQXGA (2,560 x 1,600) IPS LCD |
| Storage | 1TB SSD (PCIe, NVMe, M.2) |
| Ports | 2x USB-C with Thunderbolt 4, 2 x USB-A 3.2, 1x HDMI, 1 x microSD card reader, combi audio jack |
| Connectivity | Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth 5.0 |
| Camera | 720p webcam |
| Weight | 2.62 pounds (1.18kg) |
| Size | 14.01 x 9.58 x 0.66-inches (355.9 x 243.4 x 16.8 mm; W x D x H) |
And here’s the MacBook Air M1 for comparison.
| CPU | Apple M1 (8-core) |
| GPU | Integrated 7-core GPU |
| RAM | 8GB Unified PDDR4X-4266 MHz SDRAM |
| Screen | 13.3-inch, 2,560 x 1,600 Retina True Tone display (backlit LED, IPS) |
| Storage | 256GB PCie SSD |
| Ports | 2x Thunderbolt (USB-C), 3.5mm headphone jack |
| Connectivity | Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth 5 |
| Camera | 720p Facetime HD webcam |
| Weight | 2.8 pounds (1.29kg) |
| Size | 11.97 x 8.36 x 0.63 inches (30.41 x 21.24 x 1.61cm; W x D x H) |
Design & Display
The LG Gram 16, as you may suspect, has been designed to be ultra-low weight. At 2.62 pounds, it is the lightest laptop in its class in the world. Pretty impressive, right? To really drive the point home, it is roughly half the weight of a MacBook Pro. You can carry it around easily with one hand, or pop it into a bag and you’ll barely even notice it.
Of course, part of the reason it is able to be so light is the lack of an aluminum chassis that we see with other laptops, but there is no way around that. That’s not to say it is delicate; it is far from it. The LG Gram 16 has a full-metal body that has been made from the same material as that of aircraft (MIL-STD-810G military standard). This means it can not only withstand all sorts of drops and knocks, but it is also great from dust resistance, vibrations, and hot and cold temperatures.
The dimensions of the LG Gram 16 are 14.01 x 9.58 x 0.66-inches (355.9 x 243.4 x 16.8 mm), so although it is the lightest, it’s not necessarily the smallest.
The LG Gram 16 (2021) is equipped for all situations when it comes to ports. It has an HDMI port, a 3.5mm audio jack, and two Thunderbolt 4 USB-C ports (used also to charge and power). These are all located on the left side of the laptop. The LG Gram 16 has two USB 3.2 ports and a microSD port on the right side. The inclusion of the USB 3.2 ports and the micro SD port are particularly interesting, as it goes to show you don’t have to compromise on size in order to include them.
The LG Gram 16 has a fantastic image quality, with its 2,56t0 x 1,600 WQXGA resolution. It supports 99% of the DCI-P3 color gamut. The colors are bright, crisp, and true.
Moving onto the MacBook Air M1, it is slightly heavier, at 2.8 pounds, but it’s not a deal-breaker, as it has the aluminum chassis that we see in most laptops and makes it feel sturdy in the hands. It has a sleek, wedge-shaped design and is available in a number of colors.
The MacBook Air’s dimensions are 11.97 x 8.36 x 0.63 inches (30.41 x 21.24 x 1.61cm; W x D x H), which we feel could have been made a little smaller, as there is definitely a bit of room left to lose. In comparison to the LG Gram 16, it is still the smaller of the two. It is lacking a little in the port’s departments, with just 2 Thunderbolt USB 4 Ports (both on the left side) and a 3.5mm headphone jack, meaning a dongle will be more essential if looking to purchase this laptop.
The MacBook Air M1 has a 2,560 x 1600-pixel Retina display and produces 114.3% of the sRGB spectrum.
Performance
| Geekbench Scores | LG Gram 16 | MacBook Air M1 |
| Single Core | 1426 | 1699 |
| Multi-Core | 4842 | 7366 |
As you can see, this is where Apple takes the lead with the M1 chip. However, it has been reported that LG has been gearing up to take on Apple’s M1 chip and believes they will be able to rival it. Whether they will, is yet to be seen. One thing that’s for sure though is that both of these laptops are powerful machines.
During tests, the battery life of the LG Gram 16 lasted nine hours and forty-four minutes. In tests performed by Tom’sGuide, the battery life for the MacBook Air M1 lasted a whopping fourteen hours and forty-one minutes.
Both the LG Gram 16 and the MacBook Air M1 perform well in terms of cool running and noise.
LG Gram 16 vs MacBook Air M1: Which One is For You?
If you’re looking for a new laptop, you can’t go wrong with either of these models. Both starting at prices of $999, it will likely come down to personal preference. On paper, the specs of each are very impressive, but the M1 chip in Apple’s MacBook Air is still clinging on at the top of the food chain.
But for how long?
