Intro
To get the most out of your display device, you might consider calibrating its color. For effective calibration, you’ll need a display calibration meter. With numerous options available on the market, all offering similar features and specifications, choosing the right one can be challenging. To make it easier for you, we have gathered the most popular choices in one place. This post provides a quick overview to help you find the perfect meter for your needs.
For most people, the ColorChecker Display PRO offers a great price to performance ratio, as this device has great color and luminance accuracy. This device is the rebrand of the X-rite’s i1 Display Pro (EODIS3) device, which is super popular with enthusiasts, and the ColorChecker version has the same feature set and internals as the old i1 Display Pro, as X-rite sold this part of the business to Calibrite.
If you have been following us for a while, you know that here at Simple Home Cinema, we are passionate about both video and audio calibration, because it is the best way to maximise your investment and get the best out of your equipment. While you can hire an experienced calibrator, it is still a great idea to learn the basics and do regular touch-ups yourself, as this can save you time and lots of money in the long run. It can also be very rewarding to learn such a skill.
This is why we created a comprehensive guide to teach you the basic skills of display calibration, check it out here or by clicking the card below:
You can also start with using free content on our site by going here.
Colorimeter vs Spectrophotometer
A colorimeter and a spectrophotometer are both instruments that measure the color and luminance of a display, but they differ in how they do it. A colorimeter uses a fixed set of filters to measure the intensity of light at specific wavelengths, while a spectrophotometer uses a prism or a grating to split the light into a spectrum and measure the intensity at any wavelength. This difference in technology results in slightly different proficiencies:
Colorimeter
- Good color accuracy
- Great luminance measurements
- Generally lower cost
- Can be used for most display types but not accurate for dual and triple (RGB) laser or quantum dot displays without a CCSS / EDR file
- Generally faster
Spectrophotometer
- Great color accuracy
- Good luminance measurements, but near black can suffer, especially on high contrast displays
- More expensive
- Can be used for most display types
- Needed for dual and triple (RGB) laser displays as well as displays with quantum dots
- Slower when compared to colorimeters
For anyone looking to get into display calibration, having a colorimeter is needed as this will get you 90% of the way there without breaking the bank. To get the very best out of your system, you will want to add a spectrophotometer to your kit as well, especially if you are calibrating ultra-wide gamut displays going beyond the P3 gamut such as RGB laser displays or displays with quantum dots. This is because such displays use primaries at very narrow wavelengths which makes it very difficult for a colorimeter to accurately profile and display. However, this can be gotten around with CCSS files, which we will touched on here previously.
Datacolor Spyder Meters vs Calibrite Meters
Datacolor and Calibrite are two of the main companies that offer affordable display calibration devices, but choosing which one can be difficult as their device lines seem to have similar feature sets on the surface. However, there are slight differences that may have an affect on your finished calibrated display.
For both companies, as you move up to higher-tier meters within their product lines, the performance improves significantly, even when comparing devices with the same brightness level. This improvement can be attributed to the fact that the sensors used in these higher-tier meters are carefully selected and categorized, ensuring that only the best sensors are utilized, leaving the lower performing sensors for the lower tiers.
Editor's Note by Roland Jutai: There has been some confusion about "binned" sensors being used for lower-tier devices, but this has been my personal experience. The higher-end models seem to perform better even with regards to gamma / light intensity measurements and seem more accurate especially in the low-end and high-end. So ultimately, I personally decided to go with the Display Plus for my personal use as I wanted the peace of mind. Also, even for projectors, the display plus can do more accurate contrast measurements.
Spyder Meters
- More variance between units, therefore less color accuracy
- Cannot be used for OLED Displays
- Generally less expensive
- Cannot be updated with CCSS files
- Used for JVC projector Autocal out of the box
Calibrite Meters *
- Less variance between units, therefore more color accuracy
- Better low light accuracy
- Higher end models can be used for OLED Displays
- Generally more expensive
- Can be updated with CCSS files
- Can be used for JVC Autocal but only with hacks
* For those who are wondering about X-Rite, X-Rite rebranded and split off their display calibration business to Calibrite. Calibrate licenses the technology from X-Rite, so they are the same from a hardware perspective.
Our Pick
ColorChecker Display Pro
The ColorChecker Display Pro from Calibrite is the mid-range of the ColorChecker lineup. This means that it offers great accuracy and brightness level for a reasonable price. It is a rebranded version of X-rite’s i1 Display Pro (EODIS3). This is a very popular meter that will perform well and last longer due to its sealed sensor.
Specs
- Can calibrate up to 1000 nits.
- Good for SDR, mid-range HDR and projectors
- Excellent low light capabilities
- Ambient light mode- measurement of environmental light
High Brightness Pick / Editor’s Choice
- Standard 1/4 – 20″ mounting hole
- Display types: LCD, LED, Plasma, Projectors
- Can be used OLED displays (up to 1000 nits)
- USB-A cable
ColorChecker Display Plus
The ColorChecker Display Plus from Calibrite is the highest tier in the ColorChecker lineup. This version gets an increased nit level to 2000, which makes it good for a wider range of HDR Displays. This version should have the best tolerance for the ColorChecker line; however, this does come with a price increase.
Specs
- Can calibrate up to 2000 nits
- Higher HDR level Compatible
- Ambient light mode- measurement of environmental light
- Standard 1/4 – 20″ mounting hole
- Display types: LCD, LED, Plasma, Projectors
- Can be used on OLED displays
- USB-A cable with USB-A to USB-C adaptor included
- Sealed sensor
Other ColorChecker Meters
ColorChecker Display
The ColorChecker Display from Calibrite is the cheapest in the ColorChecker lineup. Since this is the lowest tier in the product line, it will have the lowest accuracy but should still produce decent results. This device is also the slowest in the lineup.
Specs
- Can calibrate up to 1000 nits
- Ambient light mode- measurement of environmental light
- Standard 1/4 – 20″ mounting hole
- Display types: LCD, LED, Plasma, Projectors
- USB-A cable
- Slower than other Colorchecker devices by uptown 1/2 speed limited in firmware.
- Sealed sensor
Spyder Meters
Spyder X2 Ultra
The Spyder X2 Ultra is the highest tier of the Spyder X2 family which boasts all of the features from the lower tiers and increases the brightness range to 2000 nits. This version should have the best accuracy of the Spyder line, but also costs the most.
Specs
- Can calibrate up to 2000 nits
- HDR / high brightness compatible
- Ambient light mode- measurement of environmental light
- Standard 1/4 – 20″ mounting hole
- Display types: LCD, LED, Plasma, Projectors
- Accuracy not guaranteed for OLED display.
- USB-C cable with USB-C to USB-A adaptor included in box
- Sealed sensor
Spyder X2 Elite
This is the newer, slightly updated version of the Spyder X Elite. Out of the box it comes with the same 750 nit brightness, although it can be upgraded for more. It is the further evolution of the Spyder X sensor which has better precision on accuracy and speed of the original Spyder X line.
Specs
- Can calibrate up to 750 nits out box
- Higher brightness available via upgrade license.
- Ambient light mode- measurement of environmental light
- Standard 1/4 – 20″ mounting hole
- Display types: LCD, LED, Plasma, Projectors
- Accuracy not guaranteed for OLED display.
- USB-C cable with USB-C to USB-A adaptor included in box
- Sealed sensor
Spyder X PRO
This is the first product in the Spyder lineup to receive the X platform sensor and update. This product replaces the Spyder 5, which can still be used for calibration. The update enhances the sensor compared to the Spyder 5, albeit slightly inferior to the Spyder X2 devices. Being one generation behind, this model is priced lower than the X2 devices.
Specs
- Can calibrate up to 750 nits
- Ambient light mode- measurement of environmental light
- Standard 1/4 – 20″ mounting hole
- Display types: LCD, LED, Plasma, Projectors
- Accuracy not guaranteed for OLED display.
- USB-A cable
- Sealed sensor
Spectrophotometers
As we said previously, spectrophotometers are needed for dual and triple (RGB) laser projectors for accuracy as well as displays with quantum dots. Also, for any future display technology that uses narrow-wavelength primary colours. While you can use a CCSS file to adopt the ColorChecker devices to these types of displays, a spectrophotometer will be more accurate still.
X-Rite i1Basic Pro 3
The XRite i1Basic Pro is the only spectrophotometer listed because this is one of the only devices that can be considered somewhat affordable for most enthusiasts, as other devices are much more expensive and fall in the realm of professional devices. This device comes with a white patch to calibrate the meter to a reference white.
HCFR – and any other software that uses ArgyllCMS to access the hardware – also has support to access the device’s 3nm profiling capability, which means more accuracy when working with those tools – bringing it much closer to the 1nm accuracy of professional-level devices.
Editor's Note by Roland Jutai: I worked with Graeme Gill, author of ArgyllCMS, to validate the code for i1 Pro 3's 3nm profiling capability within ArgyllCMS. Graeme was kind enough to validate my instrument and enable this mode for the i1 Pro 3.
Specs
- Can calibrate up to 5000 nits
- Spectral range 380-730nm in 10nm steps (or 3nm in HCFR / ArgyllCMS)
- 400 measurements per second
- Display types: LCD, LED, Plasma, Projectors, OLED
- Dual and triple laser displays as well as displays with quantum dots (or future narrow-wavelength technologies)
- More color accurate than colorimeters
- You still need a colorimeter for gamma calibration on high-contrast displays, preferably profiled to a spectro such as this.
In Conclusion
While each of these meters has their own advantages and disadvantages, each will work to improve your display’s picture. The most important aspect to remember when choosing what meter to buy is to make sure it will work with the display type and brightness level of your device. Display calibration can really elevate your theater experience and is well worth it if done correctly.
Display calibration is not a simple task and this is why we created The Display Calibration Guide. It takes you through calibrating your display using the free, and brilliant HCFR calibration tool.
It is the most comprehensive display calibration guide available anywhere. Don’t believe us? It also comes with a satisfaction money-back guarantee for a risk-free purchase so you can hold us to our word!
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