Pantone have launched a new calibrator at the budget end of the scale called the Huey (unfortunate name I know but what can you do) I have tried out a prelaunch model and it worked very well indeed, it's cross platform and can calibrate either LCD or CRT. you can find mode information on it here.

So this is one of those systems that uses a camera to see exactly how your monitor renders colors and then automatically adjusts your monitor to render correctly?

yep - taking into account your ambient light and all that other related nonsense.

it's distinctly in the budget end of the arena at half the price of their former entry (now mid range) level model and a fraction (3%) of the cost of their top flight system but if your new to hardware colour calibration you could do a lot worse. dont expect top end infallible gretag level calibration but you will certainly see a noticeable difference.

You tend to get what you pay for with these things. I haven’t seen or used any of them. How does it compare to things like the one eye system?

I use a spider and it work quite well.

robert - its the entry level model unit below the EyeOne but for a home user it would be more than adequate - for business/serious user you may be better opting for the EyeOne or as Clay suggested the Colorvision Spyder Pro2.

Thank you, both. I’ve always baulked at the cost of the bigger units.

I use two higher end View Sonics with 1000 to 1 contrast. But I also have two 22 inch apple studio series CRT monitors for the final product tune up. I use my spider on all four. But you can't beat a real good CRT for true color and sharpness.

I imagine a person could rent-borrow one from a graphic buddy or shop for much cheaper. It is kinda a one use is it not?

not - you should calibrate your screen on a fairly regular basis as the variables that affect the result change constantly i.e. the fidelity of your screen constantly degrades albeit it very slightly with age and the ambient lighting conditions also change quite regularly through seasonal alterations and the age of your light sources in the room the monitor is sighted.

Haha, so you need it running constantly throughout the day with the angle of the sun. I may need a computer work station mounted on a equatorial mount too;-)

no you just need to run the calibrator once every 30 days or so - takes 5 minutes. easy peasy. lemon squeezy. as they say. sometimes.

2 questions.

Do you have to buy licenses for each machine you use it on?
Can you calibrate printers and or cameras as well with these things?

no

&

you can use the icc profile the calibrator creates for your printer although for print your are as well leaving your camera on the Adobe RGB (1998) profile which is better suited to colour match in print.

Well I understood the first answer :-) Thank you.
Perhaps I should have asked will it create a printer profile? I expect the camera is ok because I shoot in ARGB.

it will create a generic icc profile that you can assign in the colour management settings of your printing preferences.

Thanks Phil, I think I will have to bite the bullet.

send that to me to PHiL.

FYI, I just purchased the Pantone Huey ($79 US at buy.com) and I've been thoroughly impressed with its capabilities and ease of use, not to mention the price.The fact that it sits in its cradle and monitors ambient room light and adjusts the monitor settings is huge for me, as the Pacific NorthWest daylight varies so much this time of year.

Dan

Thanks Dan. It's good to know it works for someone before I part with the cash.

The Huey can only create a monitor profile, not a printer profile. You use the monitor profile in conjuction with a printer profile to comunicate how each device renders color. In a color calibrated system, the monitor and printer will match as close as possible to each other. You would need different hardware and software to calibrate the printer. For something that does monitor and printer both there's the Eye One Photo for $1495.00. Here is a good primer on color management http://drycreekphoto.com/Learn/color_management.htm
(maybe somebody can show me how to do a link)

you can use the profile when printing from say photoshop by changing the proofing options around and letting Photoshop determine printer colours. if you do want to go the whole hog and create/edit your own specific printer profiles you'd be far better off sticking with the Colorvision products which start as low as $100 up to around $400 for their top of the range bundles that include monitor and printer spectrometers.

Thanks guy’s, The information your providing is exactly what I need. I do understand the principles of colour management but thought the equipment required was way out of reach for mere mortals. It seems I can choose to go with something like the Huey and know that what I send to Caedes etc is accurate. Or spend a little more and profile the printer too. Seeing as my biggest o going cost in photography is running the printer then spending a little more now may well be the cheaper long-term solution.