View Full Version : Calibrator/Colorimeter - comparison/advice?


Toriat100
02-20-2008, 10:04 AM
I was wondering what experiences any one may have had with this Colorimeter, 'Pantone hueyPRO' (£94.12). Advanced Photoshop Mag says that 'Ambient light adjustment can produce inconsistent results',.. however it does seem like a great Calibrator and within my price bracket.

I am also really interested in the Datacolor Spyder2express (£57.58), and it is a fantastic price, but I wonder whether I'd miss some of the advanced features of the premium range or whether it wouldn't make too much of a difference (I've never callibrated before, except through System Preferences! (*eek*) - but I need to get professional with my set up so might need something with more advanced features?).

I have seen that someone had recommended Pantone eye-one display LT. Has anyone found any problems with this one? This only has the option of setting Gamma at 2.2, I'm not too educated on this, but I'm guessing from my research that this would be all I'd need with my imac.

Any opinions or advice would be really appreciated! I'm quite new to calibration as usually it's all done already at my old workplaces, and my research is all a bit jumbled!

Many thanks

Doug Nelson
02-20-2008, 10:47 AM
Ignore the ambient setting. You're going to fail the ambient test anyway. The Huey is well-recommended, and would be a good choice for single monitors. i1 has the edge for multiple monitors. The best choice will be the one you use regularly.

Toriat100
02-20-2008, 10:51 AM
Thank you, much appreciated! I'm off to get the Huey

DonJ
02-20-2008, 11:02 AM
I'm a total newbie just so you know, but I have the Spyder2express and it looks like it does a good enough job. The difference between the "express" and "pro" looks like only more user control. The Pro allows you to set the gamma and or the white balance independently of the color correction process. The Express version does everything in one step without any options. I want everything to be calibrated so the Express version does what I want.

What I've noticed is that there was a difference in my saved version and what I saw in photoshop in regard to color and saturation. But after I ran the Spyder2express, what I saw is exactly what I got in the "save for web" screen.

Also I am using Windows XP and for some reason my system would not accept the Spyder2express profile until I loaded the manufactures drivers for my monitor (Dell 3007WFP). Kept getting the "profile not found" error message on startup.

dkcoats
02-21-2008, 10:31 AM
I just upgraded my Huey to Huey Pro; it handles dual monitors, for one thing. I'm sure other, more expensive tools are better but for the dough I'm pretty happy with it.