 Best Sellers | | Home ColorVision Spyder2 Express Win/Mac | |
|  | |  | | | ColorVision Spyder2 Express Win/Mac | | | | | SKU:
aaCLRVSNS2E100 | | Availability:
Out of stock | | | | | | The most effective entry level monitor calibration, just plug in by USB, let it calibrate, remove from monitor…done! Easy as 1-2-3! | | | | | |
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| | Product Details | | Product Length: | 1.4 inches | | Product Width: | 4.25 inches | | Product Height: | 4.7 inches | | Product Weight: | 0.2 pounds | | Package Length: | 10.3 inches | | Package Width: | 8.3 inches | | Package Height: | 3.7 inches | | Package Weight: | 1.3 pounds | | Average Customer Rating: |  based on 170 reviews |
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| | System Requirements | | Platform: | Windows XP / Mac OS X | | Media: | DVD-ROM | | Item Quantity: | 1 |
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| | Features | Sleek, dual-phase hardware design offers effortless calibrationCRT, LCD, and laptop displays to industry standardsState-of-the-art optical science; before and after viewingExceptionally smooth gradient steps and neutral graysOutstanding reliability backed by a 2-year hardware warranty
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| | Customer Reviews | Average Customer Review: ( 170 customer reviews )
Write an online review and share your thoughts with other customers.
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
62 of 62 found the following review helpful:
Good Basic Colorimeter Mar 11, 2007
By BobP
Pros: Good, well contructed, colorimeter for the novice, easy to use software walks you through every step. I notice a definite improvement in my new 22" WS LCD's picture. I had tried Adobe Gamma and Quick Gamma, but these programs rely on your eyes for making brightness and contrast corrections, and setting gamma. My eyes are not as sharp as they were 20 years ago.
Cons: The new updated software, version 2.3, has been out since June, 2006 but Colorvision is still shipping with the older version. Go to their website [...]), download 2.3 (110.3 MB), install it, and use the keycode on your 2.2 version to run it. The 2.3 version changes the target white point for LCDs to 6500K instead of Native. I personally prefer 6500k anyway. Gamma 2.2 and 6500K are the only choices with the Express. If you want more choices you will have to purchase the more expensive Pro version.
After calibration and exiting the software I got a "Can not find color profile" error message. Rebooting solved this.
With the counter-weight adjusted, I still had to tilt my LCD monitor back 15 - 20 degrees before I could get the Spyder to lay completely flat on the screen.
66 of 67 found the following review helpful:
 Spyder2 Suite (including PrintFIX PLUS) Sep 02, 2006
By W. Cushman
Sypder2, the monitor calibration product, is excellent. My monitor never looked this good! Documentation is a bit terse, however. Additionally, you have to know how to do a few things such as (1) disable a program from starting when you boot up and (2) manually adjust your monitor for brightness, contrast, and color temperature and reset it to the factory defaults. Of these, the most important is probably knowing how to disable Adobe Gamma on startup (if enabled), and this is not explained adequately. Some patience and possibly a call to tech support may be required.
PrintFIX PLUS (the printer profiling tool) is less intuitive and more difficult to use. There is no printed documentation, and the Help files are a bit terse. You start by picking a printer/paper combination (any one will probably do, but pick a matte profile if you want to make matte prints). You probably won't find your printer/paper combination in the list, but it really does not matter. These profiles can be used as starting points for profiling of any color printer. You disable the ICM profiling included with your print driver (in the print dialog box for your printer), then make a test print. You compare your test print with an image of the print on your monitor and then make adjustments for brightness, saturation, contrast, color, and viewing conditions.
It's an iterative process to be sure, and some patience is required. The printer profile that I created was much more accurate than any of the ICM profiles provided by HP. It made a HUGE difference in print quality.
I use the ICM profiles from Spyder2 and PrintFIX PLUS in conjunction with Photoshop Elements 4.0 and do all of my critical color printing from within that application. (Note: the ICM profiles that you create with these products are accessible from within the Photoshop Elements Print dialog box. You don't have to install them.)
Additionally, I have not experienced any crashes or other instability issues when used with Windows XP as reported by one reviewer.
Conclusions/Recommendations:
Spyder2 is recommended for any intermediate or advanced amateur photographer who uses Photoshop Elements or equivalent. Novices might be better off with Spyder2 Express, which is considerably cheaper but less robust.
PrintFIX PLUS is recommended for anyone who has some experience making color prints requiring color correction and that has an older printer or even a newer one with inadequate ICM profiles to get satisfactory results. Patience is required.
52 of 53 found the following review helpful:
 So That's What it Should Look Like Nov 10, 2006
By Brian Koch
"Aspiring Photographer"
I am always editing photos and then getting back the prints and wondering where I went wrong. I tried using manual color calibration tools which did make a big difference, but my color was still not quite right. This was so easy and accurate I regret not doing it sooner. All you have to do is install the software, disable any color altering settings you currently have in use, plug it in and let it go. It takes a few minutes going through various colors and then it is done, just like that. I have done this on both my desktop LCD and notebook LCD and they both look great. The colors just seem to have more contrast and detail. I would highly recommend this to anyone looking to get accurate color representation out of their monitors but don't want to spend a lot of time doing it.
51 of 53 found the following review helpful:
Easy as can be Sep 19, 2006
By Ricardo
Just load the software and plug it in. Follow the instruction on screen and that's it.
Couldn't be easier and the results are great. My prints now look like what I see on the monitor. Photo paper and ink are expensive. This item has already saved me more in paper and ink than it cost to buy.
32 of 33 found the following review helpful:
Easy to use Feb 06, 2007
By Earl Stuckey
I bought the Spyder 2 suite and the monitor calibration worked very well. The printer calibration, not so good. The printer calibration is strictly a judgement call. You pring a picture from the program and they match it to the monitor picture. I could have done that without paying extra for a program that is pretty lame. I thougtht the printer program would print something and then the hardware would scan it and set the printer program, unfortunatley it doesn't work that way. As I said at the stare the monitor calibration worked very well and was easy to use.
Earl Stuckey
See all 170 customer reviews on Amazon.com
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