Best Lightweight Laptops with Big Display (15.6-inch or bigger): Big on productivity, small on weight

Samuel J Tan Laptops, Personal Technology, Popular, Technology 0

Weight and size always go hand-in-hand. Laptops with big displays alway come with it the heft, until now. These big laptops with 15.6-inch, 16-inch and even 17-inch displays weigh no more than 1.7kg. We take a look at one of the lightest and slimmest big laptops around. Big on productivity minus the back breaking weight.

Table of Contents

Top 10 Best Big and Light Laptops with 15.6-inch or Bigger Display

There is a new breed of ultraportable that does not compromise of screen size yet is light enough and easy on the shoulder and back. These lightweight laptops with big display are big on productivity thanks to the ease of viewing, slim and lightweight by design. You don’t have to sacrifice screen real estate just for going light. We ordered out list by the lightest and then the slimmest to give you an idea of its size and weight.

Ordered by Lightest

Samsung Galaxy Book Pro 15.6-inch 1.05kg 11.7mm – LIGHTEST + SLIMMEST
LG Gram 16Z90P 16-inch 1.2kg 16.8mm
LG Gram 17Z90P 17-inch 1.35kg 17.8mm – BIGGEST DISPLAY
Samsung Galaxy Book Pro 360 15.6-inch 1.39kg 11.9mm – MOST VERSATILE
Microsoft Surface Laptop 4 15-inch 1.54kg 14.7mm – TOUCHSCREEN
Samsung Galaxy Book 15.6-inch 1.55kg 15.4mm
Huawei MateBook D 15 2021 15.6-inch 1.56kg 16.9mm
HP 15s 15.6-inch AMD Ryzen 7 1.65kg 17.9mm
Acer Swift 3 16.1-inch 1.7kg 15.9mm
Asus Vivobook S 15 S513EA 15.6-inch 1.8kg 18mm

Ordered by Slimmest

Samsung Galaxy Book Pro 15.6-inch 1.05kg 11.7mm – LIGHTEST + SLIMMEST
Samsung Galaxy Book Pro 360 15.6-inch 1.39kg 11.9mm – MOST VERSATILE
Microsoft Surface Laptop 4 15-inch 1.54kg 14.7mm – TOUCHSCREEN
Samsung Galaxy Book 15.6-inch 1.55kg 15.4mm
Acer Swift 3 16.1-inch 1.7kg 15.9mm
LG Gram 16Z90P 16-inch 1.2kg 16.8mm
Huawei MateBook D 15 2021 15.6-inch 1.56kg 16.9mm
LG Gram 17Z90P 17-inch 1.35kg 17.8mm – BIGGEST DISPLAY
HP 15s 15.6-inch AMD Ryzen 7 1.65kg 17.9mm
Asus Vivobook S 15 S513EA 15.6-inch 1.8kg 18mm

When it comes to big and light, two manufacturers dominate the list, Samsung and LG with their Galaxy Book and LG Gram series respectively. Other manufacturers that made it to the list include Microsoft, Huawei, HP, Asus and Acer.

1. Samsung Galaxy Book Pro 15.6-inch Laptop 1.05kg 11.7mm – LIGHTEST + SLIMMEST

Intel® Evo™ platform
Intel® Core™ i7-1165G7 Processor
RAM: 16 GB / Storage: 512 GB SSD
15.6-inch Full HD AMOLED screen
11.7 x 355.4 x 225.8 mm (H x W x D), 1.05kg

Barely over a kilo, the Samsung Galaxy Book Pro is the lightest, just over a kilo (1.05kg) and slimmest, slimmer than some tablets at 11.7mm, big laptop in our list. It comes with a full size 15.6-inch Full HD AMOLED display that offers plenty in way of contrast ratio, brightness and colour. A smaller Galaxy Book Pro with 13.3-inch display and that super slim body is also available, but as we are after lightweight laptops with large displays, this is right up our alley. Two colour options, Mystic Silver and Mystic Blue are available with various CPU, memory and storage configuration. Our favourite is the chart topping Core i7 model here. For your money, you get fat boot-up, bright and clear display, amazing performance, lightning fast in fact and excellent design.

2. LG Gram 16Z90P 16-inch Laptop 1.2kg 16.8mm

Intel® Evo™ platform
Intel® Core™ i7-1165G7 Processor
RAM: 16 GB / Storage: 1 TB SSD
Quad HD IPS screen (2560 x 1600 pixel)
Up to 22 hours battery life
16.8 x 355.9 x 243.4 mm (H x W x D), 1.2kg

Next we have the LG Gram 16Z90P which isn’t the slimmest, measuring 16.8mm but is certainly lightweight at only 1.2kg. To accomplish this on a 16-inch laptop is by no means a small feat, hats off to the engineers at LG. However, this won’t be the last of large, portable and lightweight laptops from the Gram series. We love the even three sided bezel and sleek minimalist look. We also love the Quad HD 1600p resolution 16-inch display and the uncompromising and ultra long battery life of up to 22 hours. For a laptop this light, it’s impossible to think it can still pack a battery that offers that many hours of use. It is also equipped with Thunderbolt 4 ports so you an hook up two 4K external displays or a single 8K display.

3. LG Gram 17Z90P 17-inch Laptop 1.35kg 17.8mm – BIGGEST DISPLAY

Intel® Evo™ platform
Intel® Core™ i7-1165G7 Processor
RAM: 16 GB / Storage: 1 TB SSD
17-inch Quad HD screen
Up to 19.5 hours battery life

Using the same design handbook and pushing screen size and portability to the limits is this LG Gram 17Z90P. With the biggest display on any laptop in our line-up, the 17-inch laptop still manages to stay under the 2kg mark. In fact, it did better than that. At 1.35kg, it weighs less than the next 15.6-inch laptop. That again is a marvel. A 17-inch laptops that way no more than 1.35kg. Lugging a standard 17-inch laptop would have been back breaking.

4. Samsung Galaxy Book Pro 360 15.6-inch Laptop 1.39kg 11.9mm – MOST VERSATILE

Intel® Evo™ platform
Intel® Core™ i5-1135G7 Processor
RAM: 8 GB / Storage: 512 GB SSD
15.6-inch Full HD Super AMOLED touchscreen

Want something with a little more versatility? This 2-in-1 convertible laptop ought to do it. Not only is it a big laptop with a full size 15.6-inch Super AMOLED touchscreen mounted to a 360 degree hinge, it supports stylus too. And, the real bonus is, the S Pen stylus is included in the package. You can convert the Galaxy Book Pro 360 into a tablet and start scribbling away with the stylus as soon as you get it. As a Pro level device, it doesn’t come cheap but for your trouble, you get a stylish, lightweight, weighing only 1.39kg and super slim, measuring 11.9mm thin laptop that also delivers on performance and power. Speaking of which, the battery life is amazing with up to 20 hours of use on a full charge and you get nice

5. Microsoft Surface Laptop 4 15-inch Laptop 1.54kg 14.7mm – TOUCHSCREEN

Intel® Core™ i7-1185G7 Processor
RAM: 16 GB / Storage: 512 GB SSD
Quad HD touchscreen
Battery life: Up to 16.5 hours

Microsoft’s portfolio of Surface devices hasn’t just grown but are kept fresh, generation after generation. The Surface Laptop 4 may look similar to previous generation but it comes powered by a healthy choice of CPUs including the 11th generation Intel Core-i and AMD Ryzen processors. The device is both ultra slim and light and even though it features a Quad HD touchscreen in a compact body, it still manages up to 16.5 hours of battery life on a full charge. What is really impressive is the design and colour options including use of soft Alcantara and cool metal finish. And, while we only feature the 15-inch model here owing to the fact that we are after ultra portable laptops with big display, the 13.5-inch model is equally impressive and capable.

6. Samsung Galaxy Book 15.6-inch Laptop 1.55kg 15.4mm

Intel® Core™ i7-1165G7 Processor
RAM: 8 GB / Storage: 512 GB SSD
Full HD screen
Battery life: Up to 11 hours

No, your eyes are not playing tricks on you. The Galaxy Book above may look similar to the Galaxy Book Pro on the top of our list but this more affordable version is certainly nowhere near as slim or light as it’s Pro sibling. It does however come with a full 15.6-inch Full HD display and still manages to stay a healthy 15.4mm slim and weighing in at 1.55kg. This puts it just over the mid-position in our list. A good average if you ask me when looking for ultra slim and ultra lightweight machines. A small compromise for those whom are budget concious but still want a reliable machine from a reputable brand. The Core i5 model is even more affordable and is available with LTE connectivity if you need to be connected all the time.

7. Huawei MateBook D 15 2021 15.6-inch Laptop 1.56kg 16.9mm

Intel® Core™ i5-1135G7 Processor
RAM: 8 GB / Storage: 512 GB SSD
15.6-inch Full HD screen
Battery life: Up to 7.5 hours
16.9 x 357.8 x 229.9 mm (H x W x D), 1.56kg

Fancy a MacBook Pro lookalike, the Huawei MateBook D15 with its space grey metal chassis is your budget alternative. The 2021 version is powered by 11th generation Intel Core i5-1135G7. What is rather disappointing is the rather short battery life on a charge of up to 7.5 hours, just about but not quite a full day’s charge. The saving grace is the big and decent 15.6-inch Full HD IPS display (300 nits brightness) and of course, the slim 16.9mm body weighing under 1.6kg. As a business laptop, it excels as a fast laptop with big display that won’t weigh you down, but the camera placement, on the keyboard doesn’t offer the best camera angle for your video calls.

8. HP 15s 15.6-inch AMD Ryzen 7 Laptop 1.65kg 17.9mm

AMD Ryzen 7 5700U Processor
RAM: 8 GB / Storage: 512 GB SSD
15.6-inch Full HD screen
Battery life: Up to 9.5 hours
17.9 x 358.5 x 242 mm (H x W x D), 1.69kg

This budget entry from HP has a surprise up its sleeve, the laptop is powered by AMD Ryzen 7 5700U octa-core processor with Radeon Graphics. Cheaper models powered by Ryzen 5 and Ryzen 3 are also available. But, without compromising on performance at a price that we can all agree on, the Ryzen 7 model is to go for. While we are not hot on the off centre track pad, nor the size of it given that most track pads these days are much bigger, we appreciate the sheer performance, large display and long battery life but foremost are how slim the chassis is at 17.9mm and lightweight at 1.69kg.

9. Acer Swift 3 16.1-inch Laptop 1.7kg 15.9mm

Intel® Core™ i7-11370H Processor
RAM: 8 GB / Storage: 1 TB SSD
16.1-inch Full HD screen
Battery life: Up to 11.5 hours
15.9 x 367.8 x 236.1 mm (H x W x D), 1.7kg

Thin and light is the order of the day, but instead of the typical 14-inch, this ACER Swift 3 comes with a whooping 16.1-inch Full HD display, a more modern display size, moving away from the more standard 15.6-inch full display. Another bonus for going with this reasonably price ACER Swift 3 apart from its slender 15.9mm slim chassis and trim 1.7kg weight, is the huge 1TB SSD storage. What is even more impressive is how fast and responsive the device is, with quick boot up time on that nice and bright IPS LCD display. In case you are wonder, the cheaper Intel Core i5-11300H model also comes with the same 8GB memory and 1TB SSD storage.

10. ASUS VivoBook S 15 S513EA Laptops 1.8kg 18mm

Intel® Core™ i5-1135G7 Processor
RAM: 8 GB / Storage: 256 GB SSD
15.6-inch Full HD screen
235 x 359 x 19.9 mm (H x W x D), 1.8kg

Intel® Core™ i5-1135G7 Processor
RAM: 8 GB / Storage: 256 GB SSD
15.6-inch Full HD screen
235 x 359 x 19.9 mm (H x W x D) 1.8kg

Towards the budget end is this ASUS VivoBook X513EA laptop with 15.6-inch display. It’s not exactly the slimmest or lightest but still quite the lightweight at 1.8kg. The display brightness is a little underwhelming and being a budget device, it comes only with a paltry 256GB SSD storage but there is plenty in way of connectivity ports and modern wireless kit such as WiFi 6 and Bluetooth 5.0. There is even an SD card reader, truly great value.

BONUS: ASUS VivoBook K553 15.6-inch Laptop 17.9mm 1.8kg

At the opposite end of the price spectrum of the VivoBook we saw earlier is the VivoBook K553. For the difference, you money goes to double memory, double storage and that cool 15.6-inch super bright (400nits) and vivid OLED display. If you can’t stand lacklustre and washed out display, this Full HD IPS OLED screen wrapped in frameless NanoEdge bezel is for you. All that in a package measuring just under 18mm and weighing 1.8kg.