Calibrating Laptop Displays

l1ake · Post by **l1ake** » Wed Oct 08, 2008 9:04 am

I know that calibrations have been mainly associated with stand alone displays. Are there any calibration options for laptop displays? What complications would be involved in a display that is integrated into a laptop chassis? Are most of your calibration options going to be limited to the video cards in the laptop - would new drivers affect calibrations made on old drivers?

I was basically interested in getting my laptop display calibrated because I will be using it a lot for graphics design. However, I was also interested in the process because a laptop builder I know might be interested in providing calibrations as a configuration option before shipping to his customers. Would calibrating the display before its been "worn in" be a bad thing?

Richard · Post by **Richard** » Thu Oct 09, 2008 8:18 am

Are most of your calibration options going to be limited to the video cards in the laptop - would new drivers affect calibrations made on old drivers?

Yes. With a laptop there is no separate display calibration and it has to come from the features of the video card and drivers. It should be noted that even with a separate PC display they are notoriously limited for adjustment. The display I am using right now, a Samsung LCD SyncMaster 192N, has only gain controls for color temp and if there is a service menu it isn't documented!

As for drivers, yes again. Not only that, you may not be able to transfer settings from the old to the new and get the same response requiring another calibration. That happened on my Video card for the gaming PC which in my application requires the video levels be changed from PC 0-255 to video 16-235. They do not provide a bit by bit adjustment either so I have to use the Panasonic PTAE1000 waveform monitor to set it. With the original firmware I had different numbers for brightness and contrast than I have now with newer firmware.

a laptop builder I know might be interested in providing calibrations as a configuration option before shipping to his customers. Would calibrating the display before its been "worn in" be a bad thing?

I don't see break in of the display as any real issue with laptop display technology (LCD/TFT). Professional digital photographers have successfully used the GregtagMacbeth/X-Rite packages for display and printer calibration.

http://www2.chromix.com/colorgear/shop/ ... swodVzKp6Q

http://usa.gretagmacbethstore.com/

As I recall the package can automatically calibrate the display by adjusting the video driver settings rather than the display. I have never tried this with mine so I can't vouch for the accuracy. I recommend your builder work with an ISF pro to insure he is getting the right results. He could even take an ISF course and then sell the option of ISF Calibrated which may pull better weight since the ISF is nationally recognized as a provider of video standards.

l1ake · Post by **l1ake** » Thu Oct 09, 2008 9:49 pm

here is another question:

say I have the laptop calibrated. I also have an external monitor which is also calibrated. If you hooked the laptop up to the monitor, would I get a calibrated image, or would the drivers from the laptop screw things up?

rml · Post by **rml** » Sat Oct 11, 2008 7:32 am

Professional digital photographers have successfully used the GregtagMacbeth/X-Rite packages for display and printer calibration.

http://www2.chromix.com/colorgear/shop/ ... swodVzKp6Q

http://usa.gretagmacbethstore.com/

You might also check out the modestly priced CalMan calibration package. It works well with a range of inexpensive to professional colorimeters:

http://www.spectracal.com/

Richard · Post by **Richard** » Sat Oct 11, 2008 6:01 pm

l1ake wrote:say I have the laptop calibrated. I also have an external monitor which is also calibrated. If you hooked the laptop up to the monitor, would I get a calibrated image, or would the drivers from the laptop screw things up?

Since you have to use the drivers in the laptop to calibrate the laptop display my first response would be, you likely have a problem! If an external monitor is calibrated (can be calibrated properly) then you would want your video driver to be zeroed out, no adjustments active, provided it is outputting the correct signals. I have never dealt with dual displays or your application. It could be that the driver uses different settings for the second monitor in dual mode or when using an external with your laptop.

For the past 7 years since I have been involved I have heard nothing but four letter words from ISF calibrators who have attempted PC calibration (expecting a video calibration regimen). If the display supports a full calibration the calibrator then found out the video card was not right. Ultimately it ended up being a calibration of the video card, driver and display combination. Often times that still wasn't good enough. On top of that, change one of those and it will likely be out of spec...