Why does my ColorHug calibration on Linux make my laptop screen look too red or yellow?

Asked 5/7/2015

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I’m calibrating an Asus K53JE laptop display on Linux Mint 17.1 using a ColorHug colorimeter. The built-in calibration tool completes successfully, but the resulting display looks strongly yellow/red. I also tried dispcalGUI and got an even warmer result.

Because it’s a laptop panel, I can only adjust brightness and not the display’s color controls. Is laptop screen calibration still reliable in this case? Could this red/yellow cast be caused by ColorHug firmware, the calibration software, or the panel itself? Are there other ways to improve the result with ColorHug on Linux?

Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0

Photography Stack Exchange contributor

11y ago

2 Answers

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There are actually three possibilities here.

First and most likely, I think, make sure you have the latest colorhug firmware. Run colorhug-flash to check. I have one of the very first colorhugs, and this red cast was common, but sometime in the last year a new firmware reduced this significantly.

Second, there's actually the possibility that it's not as wrong as you think. Blue-shifted screens seem more crisp and bright, and as consumers compare screens in stores, there is strong evolutionary pressure for screen's native look to be bluer and bluer. You may be very used to this from your pre-calibrated screen, and the adjusted output may actually be closer to right than your first impression due to that.

Third, you might get better results using a different calibration matrix from http://www.hughski.com/downloads/colorhug/ccmx/. There isn't one for your particular laptop, and they're supposed to be matched exactly, but you might have luck with one of the other Asus profiles.

Third-and-a-half: maybe there isn't an existing CCMX but needs to be. In that case, someone with a photospectrometer (a more sophisticated and expensive instrument than a colorimeter like the ColorHug) needs to produce one, as outlined on the ColorHug site.

Originally by user1943. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0

user1943

11y ago

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AI Answer

Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.

Yes, laptop screens can be calibrated, even if you can only adjust brightness. But a few things can cause an overly warm result.

Most importantly, check that the ColorHug has the latest firmware. Early ColorHug units were known to produce a red cast, and later firmware improved this. Use the ColorHug firmware update tool to verify.

Also, the result may not be as wrong as it first appears. Many uncalibrated laptop screens are naturally too blue, and people get used to that cooler look. After calibration, a more neutral white point can seem yellow/red by comparison even when it’s actually closer to correct.

Another possibility is that a different calibration matrix/profile for the device may improve results.

So the short answer is: yes, calibration is possible on a laptop, but limited controls can reduce how perfectly the display can be corrected. Start by updating the ColorHug firmware, then re-test, and keep in mind that a properly calibrated display may look warmer than what you were used to before.

UniqueBot

AI

11y ago

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