T61 - Calibrate the LCD

[rxblitzrx]

I found a review of the T61 http://www.notebookcheck.net/Review-Len ... 381.0.html and they did a calibration of the LCD.

Does anyone else notice that the T61 14.1" 1440x900 looks a little too blue?

Did anyone calibrate their LCD using anything else besides the Intel Graphics Media panel that's part of the integrated graphics drivers?

[erik]

if you just want to remove the blue cast then the gamma controls may be enough to let you hack your way through it.   if you're doing color-critical work then you need a proper hardware display calibrator like an x-rite/gretag-macbeth eye-one display2 or datacolor/colorvision spyder3.

[BradS]

I have used http://www.hex2bit.com/products/product_mcw.asp on my 14.1 SXGA+ with good results. It is completely user dependent, so you'll have to do it right and take your time if you want it to look its best. Also remember that the look of your screen will change with the lighting (fluorescent, natural, ect, ect).

[rxblitzrx]

I have used http://www.hex2bit.com/products/product_mcw.asp on my 14.1 SXGA+ with good results. It is completely user dependent, so you'll have to do it right and take your time if you want it to look its best. Also remember that the look of your screen will change with the lighting (fluorescent, natural, ect, ect).

Thanks for the program! I think my results turned out better with this than the default gamma correction provided by the drivers. It was simple and painless enough with the excellent options to increase brightness, start your profile upon boot, and override the driver settings.

Free too.

[dh5551212]

Hmm, would this calibration thing (can you sense my level of expertise?) help with the light blue boxes that show up in the gray menu bar areas of IE? It looks like those scrambled barcodes you see on a FedEx or UPS label.

[rxblitzrx]

Hmm, would this calibration thing (can you sense my level of expertise?) help with the light blue boxes that show up in the gray menu bar areas of IE? It looks like those scrambled barcodes you see on a FedEx or UPS label.

Not exactly sure what you're talking about. I even tried opening IE7 to look for them. Anyhow, calibration of any kind will help globally in the end. I think everyone can agree that the T61 LCD panel is poorly calibrated out the door. From what I've seen, the most common problem is with there being too much blue.

[dh5551212]

Thanks blitz,
Is there a way I can attach a picture to this post so I can show you what I see?

[rxblitzrx]

Thanks blitz,
Is there a way I can attach a picture to this post so I can show you what I see?

Maybe try one of the buttons on top of the "reply textbox"

[gator]

Host the pictures on http://imageshack.us and post the link here.

As to the coloration issue, see what color depth you have set your LCD to. Try setting it to 32 bits (right click on desktop, go to properties-->settings) and see if the issue still persists.

[ryengineer]

Thanks blitz,
Is there a way I can attach a picture to this post so I can show you what I see?

You can host it on some free file sharing server like imageshack and post it as a link in your message. In future, if you start a thread you can put a picture warning in the subject line and display the picture in the body as long as the size limit is up to 50kb, greater than that size should be posted as a link.

[erik]

tinypic.com works perfectly for this very purpose.

[crashnburn]

Nice. It improves the colors... But takes a little effort going through the calibration process.

[rxblitzrx]

Nice. It improves the colors... But takes a little effort going through the calibration process.

yeah it takes time, but i think it's definitely worth it in the end.

[dh5551212]

I'm such a tard; changing the settings to 32-bit seems to have done the trick.

In case you want to see what it looked like:


I wish you guys hadn't said it was too blue, NOW I notice it...doh!
Thanks for all the help.
David

[rxblitzrx]

I'm such a tard; changing the settings to 32-bit seems to have done the trick.

In case you want to see what it looked like:


I wish you guys hadn't said it was too blue, NOW I notice it...doh!
Thanks for all the help.
David

Yeah, every little "bit" helps.

Once you know though, it's so much better!

[oghowie]

My wife's t60p with Flexview has the same problem with color. We've used Spyder to calibrate the colors, but it still isn't as accurate as my t43. Is that just how the new Lenovo monitors are?

It's gotten so bad that we're planning on selling the laptop and getting something with better color reproduction out of the box. We do a lot of Photoshop & Illustrator work so it's pretty important.

[erik]

My wife's t60p with Flexview has the same problem with color. We've used Spyder to calibrate the colors, but it still isn't as accurate as my t43. Is that just how the new Lenovo monitors are?

It's gotten so bad that we're planning on selling the laptop and getting something with better color reproduction out of the box. We do a lot of Photoshop & Illustrator work so it's pretty important.

if you're doing that much color-critical work then you really need to invest in a good 8-bit external display.   laptop displays are all 6-bit and very limited in their gamut, including IPS, FFS, or LED-backlit displays.   using a laptop for this kind of work without a proper display is a hack in my opinion.   fwiw, i've been using illustrator and photoshop since versions 88 and 2.5 respectively -- and that's been almost 20 years.

lenovo is soon to start shipping the thinkvantage L220x.   if you don't know about it already, it's a 22" WUXGA (1920x1200) S-PVA display with 92% color gamut for only $499 retail.   it might be worth looking into.

[oghowie]

if you're doing that much color-critical work then you really need to invest in a good 8-bit external display. laptop displays are all 6-bit and very limited in their gamut, including IPS, FFS, or LED-backlit displays. using a laptop for this kind of work without a proper display is a hack in my opinion. fwiw, i've been using illustrator and photoshop since versions 88 and 2.5 respectively -- and that's been almost 20 years.

lenovo is soon to start shipping the thinkvantage L220x. if you don't know about it already, it's a 22" WUXGA (1920x1200) S-PVA display with 92% color gamut for only $499 retail. it might be worth looking into.

Hmmm, I'll hook her laptop up to my external display and see if that makes a difference.

The color problem tend to be a major annoyance because we travel frequently and rely on our laptops a lot to proof things.

[rxblitzrx]

lenovo is soon to start shipping the thinkvantage L220x. if you don't know about it already, it's a 22" WUXGA (1920x1200) S-PVA display with 92% color gamut for only $499 retail. it might be worth looking into.

Another option might be
(This next bit of info was snipped from another forum)

PHOTO EDITING/WEB DESIGN (classic sRGB/web-target photo editing, or web design)

* High contrast at medium brightness
* Accurate color/gamma curve
* sRGB (72% NTSC) gamut for better screen matching


1. 24.1": NEC MultiSync LCD2490WUXi, 1920x1200 (16:10)
* Panel: A-TW-IPS (LG.Philips LM240WU1); true 8-bit, 16.7M colors
* Image Delay (rt+lag, estimated): Medium (30 ms)
* Specifications: NEC MultiSync LCD2490WUXi
* HDCP Compliant: Yes
* More Info: prad.de
* Notes: High-end photo editing monitor, somewhat suitable for multimedia as well.
* Price: ~$1,340 USD


2. 21.3": NEC MultiSync LCD2190UXp, 1600x1200 (4:3)
* Panel: S-PVA (Samsung LTM213U6); true 8-bit, 16.7M colors
* Image Delay (rt+lag, estimated): Medium (30 ms)
* Specifications: NEC MultiSync LCD2190UXp
* HDCP Compliant: No
* More Info: prad.de
* Notes: Great color reproduction and contrast. Adjustable overdrive setting. Turned out a little better overall than the LCD2190UXi (S-IPS) in X-Bit Labs' tests.
* Price: ~$1,050 USD


3. 19": NEC MultiSync LCD1990SXi, 1280x1024 (5:4)
* Panel: S-IPS (LG.Philips LM190E05); true 8-bit, 16.7M colors
* Image Delay (rt+lag, estimated): High (40 ms)
* Specifications: NEC MultiSync LCD1990SXi
* HDCP Compliant: No
* More Info: prad.de
* Notes: Too high of a response time for any gaming.
* Price: ~$750 USD


4. 20.1": NEC MultiSync 20WMGX2, 1680x1050 (16:10)
* Panel: Glossy AS-IPS (LG.Philips LM201WE2); true 8-bit, 16.7M colors
* Image Delay (rt+lag): 0 - 15.3 - 32
* Specifications: NEC MultiSync 20WMGX2
* HDCP Compliant: Yes
* More Info: prad.de
* Notes: Awesome display. Great color reproduction and fast response time. Not too much input lag. European edition (LCD20WGX2) lacks all multimedia features like TV tuner, some inputs, and HDCP. For photo editing or DTP, use DV Mode Standard and Advanced DVM Off settings only. Has some image retention issues due to S-IPS panel.
* Price: ~$360 USD (AR)


5. 20.1": HP LP2065, 1600x1200 (4:3)
* Panel: S-IPS/AMVA (LG.Philips LM201U05, AUO M201UN02 V6); true 8-bit, 16.7M colors
* Image Delay (rt+lag, estimated): Medium (32 ms)
* Specifications: HP LP2065
* HDCP Compliant: No
* More Info: prad.de
* Notes: Panel lottery between S-IPS/AMVA panels. Both panels have their good merits.
* Price: ~$350 USD (AR)


6. 19": Samsung SyncMaster 971P, 1280x1024 (5:4)
* Panel: PVA (Samsung LTM190E4); true 8-bit, 16.7M colors (subject to variation)
* Image Delay (rt+lag): 0 - 4.5 - 20
* Specifications: Samsung SyncMaster 971P
* HDCP Compliant: No
* More Info: prad.de
* Notes: NOT suitable for any multimedia or motion video editing because of poor response time control. Very nice black level, good for photo editing or static applications like MS Office. No adjustment buttons on bezel, settings can only be controlled through software.
* Price: ~$300 USD


7. 24": HP LP2465, 1920x1200 (16:10)
* Panel: S-PVA (Samsung LTM240M2); true 8-bit, 16.7M colors
* Image Delay (rt+lag, estimated): High (40 ms)
* Specifications: HP LP2465
* HDCP Compliant: No
* More Info: prad.de
* Notes: Great performance and value. No non-PC inputs, though. Console compatibility not guaranteed thru VGA/DVI.
* Price: ~$530 USD (AR)


8. 24": BenQ FP241W, 1920x1200 (16:10)
* Panel: AMVA (AUO M240UW01 V2); true 8-bit, 16.7M colors
* Image Delay (rt+lag): 24 - 33.7 - 52
* Specifications: BenQ FP241W
* HDCP Compliant: Yes
* Notes: Good uniformity and grayscale reproduction. Some stock may lack 1:1 display mode. NCIX (Canada) can flash the firmware for you, perhaps other stores as well. Some units known to have blackout problems (well-documented w/ some proposed solutions). Consider HP LP2465 as an alternative.
* Price: ~$640 USD (AR)




Didn't leave the name of the forum I got this from. Sorry, didn't know if that was allowed here or not.