How do display calibrators work?

[Botul]

A while ago I built a PC after using laptops my entire life, and I've been struggling to get my monitor to look as good as the laptop display. I've tested a few monitors, and they all had their issues (mainly with colors looking inaccurate, both compared to the laptop and my phone). I've played with the OSD settings on all of them, but fixing one issue often created other issues.

I'm considering getting a color calibrator, but I'm not quite sure how they work. All I know is you connect one to the PC, run calibration software like DisplayCAL, and it spits out an icc file. Apparently, icc profiles only work in certain creative applications, but the way review sites talk about is makes it seem like calibration can also make a difference system-wide? Can calibration work for my use case, making the display(s) look better for daily use, or is it something that's only useful for color-critical work in certain programs?

The only calibrator I can get for a decent price where I live is the Datacolor SpyderX PRO, if that matters. If I pay around 40USD more, I can also get an EIZO EX5, SpyderX Create Kit, or Spyder (2024), though I'd rather keep it budget-friendly.

[danalog]

I bought a Spyder 2 a while back.

What it does is it flashes a sequence of colors on your monitor for a few minutes, analyzes results and, as you said, it produces an ICC file that works in some applications. 

However, there's a way to apply ICC profiles system-wide using Windows Color Management. It's pretty complex so I'll link the full guide that I used down below. 

How to Install ICC Profiles on Windows 10 & 11 for Accurate Color | Windows Forum

As mentioned in the article, some programs bypass the profile but that's as good as you can get.

[OddOod]

Welcome to the forums!
One thing to check is if your local library loans out hardware/tools. Some do, and many that do have display calibrators.

[Botul]

16 minutes ago, danalog said:

I bought a Spyder 2 a while back.

What it does is it flashes a sequence of colors on your monitor for a few minutes, analyzes results and, as you said, it produces an ICC file that works in some applications. 

However, there's a way to apply ICC profiles system-wide using Windows Color Management. It's pretty complex so I'll link the full guide that I used down below. 

How to Install ICC Profiles on Windows 10 & 11 for Accurate Color | Windows Forum

As mentioned in the article, some programs bypass the profile but that's as good as you can get.

I see, would you say that's a better solution than looking for a monitor that's color accurate out of the box? Ignoring the small differences from one unit to another, most reviews of monitors I've considered buying claim the colors aren't that accurate, so I was hoping that calibrators would be able to fix that. 

 

13 minutes ago, OddOod said:

Welcome to the forums!
One thing to check is if your local library loans out hardware/tools. Some do, and many that do have display calibrators.

Thanks! I've looked into that, and sadly nothing in my area has anything like that available. I saw a few online listings for rentals on my country's equivalent of eBay, but those specific listings seem very consumer-unfriendly, so I'd rather just buy the device myself.

[danalog]

7 minutes ago, Botul said:

I see, would you say that's a better solution than looking for a monitor that's color accurate out of the box? Ignoring the small differences from one unit to another, most reviews of monitors I've considered buying claim the colors aren't that accurate, so I was hoping that calibrators would be able to fix that.

A lot of gaming monitors have terrible color because it doesn't matter to a lot of people, OR certain parts of the spectrum are intentionally boosted for gaming usage. Workstation/creator monitors have far better colors but you won't get high refresh rates or curved displays if that's what you're after. So a monitor targeted at creative professionals would be good for you if you want super-accurate colors, but you'll get 60hz (maybe 120) and probably 1920x1200. 

[OddOod]

11 minutes ago, Botul said:

rentals on my country's equivalent of eBay

Gross. 12/10 buy. 

[JonS77]

1 hour ago, Botul said:

Can calibration work for my use case, making the display(s) look better for daily use, or is it something that's only useful for color-critical work in certain programs?

Maybe I've missed something in your text, but what actually is your usecase? What monitor do you have? To put it simply, only color critical work like broadcasting, very serious content creation, or printing related activities benefit from this much care and buying a color calibrator. And of course first your monitor needs to be made for this type of content creation as regular monitors you buy for a PC is not made for that type of color accurate work. 

 

If your problem is that your monitor colors look different from your phone or laptop, you may check other settings such as color temp on your monitor. If your usecase is just daily use and gaming and watching videos then purchasing a color calibrator is not for you.

 

Most TVs, namely OLEDs, today have much better color and contrast representation and even then spending time on having them be calibrated by professionals just for home use is not that sensible. 

[Botul]

8 hours ago, JonS77 said:

Maybe I've missed something in your text, but what actually is your usecase? What monitor do you have? To put it simply, only color critical work like broadcasting, very serious content creation, or printing related activities benefit from this much care and buying a color calibrator. And of course first your monitor needs to be made for this type of content creation as regular monitors you buy for a PC is not made for that type of color accurate work. 

 

If your problem is that your monitor colors look different from your phone or laptop, you may check other settings such as color temp on your monitor. If your usecase is just daily use and gaming and watching videos then purchasing a color calibrator is not for you.

 

Most TVs, namely OLEDs, today have much better color and contrast representation and even then spending time on having them be calibrated by professionals just for home use is not that sensible. 

I was pretty tired when I wrote the post, so I'll explain it again.

 

My goal is to get the best picture I can on the monitor I already own. I have an iiyama GCB3480WQSU ultrawide, it's a pretty good display except for the colors, which are noticeably off. I've tried playing with pretty much every setting on the monitor, but fixing one issue often causes another. The colors are way too green/blue, and lowering those two in the OSD fixes that at the cost of making white/gray very warm. None of the gamma settings seem to be anywhere close to 2.2, and in general it's a bit of a mess when it comes to getting an accurate picture. I tried a few other displays, and almost all of them also struggled with the color accuracy.

 

Since I've stared at laptop screens (which maybe aren't 100% accurate but are certainly closer than the gaming monitors I've tried) for tens of thousands of hours over the course of the past few years, I'm very used to how things are supposed to look. From what I saw, monitors are either made for gaming (high refresh rates, low color accuracy), or work (low refresh rates, high(er) color accuracy), and I was hoping that getting a calibrator would allow me to get a more accurate picture while also keeping a 144hz+ refresh rate, something like what the laptops I've used for years showed.

 

Thus came my question from the original post, how do calibrators work? I couldn't find a simple answer, does the calibration only apply in so called "color-managed apps", or would performing it improve the picture quality overall? I found a video about the exact monitor I own, and apparently calibration fixes pretty much all of it's color issues, so if the results are system-wide then spending 150 bucks on a calibrator could be a worthwhile investment, certainly better than trying to find a monitor that fits my criteria while also being color accurate out of the box. If the results only apply to creative software, then getting one wouldn't fix my issues.

 

Hopefully that's a bit clearer.

[JonS77]

On 6/21/2025 at 7:23 PM, Botul said:

My goal is to get the best picture I can on the monitor I already own. I have an iiyama GCB3480WQSU ultrawide, it's a pretty good display except for the colors, which are noticeably off. I've tried playing with pretty much every setting on the monitor, but fixing one issue often causes another. The colors are way too green/blue, and lowering those two in the OSD fixes that at the cost of making white/gray very warm. None of the gamma settings seem to be anywhere close to 2.2, and in general it's a bit of a mess when it comes to getting an accurate picture. I tried a few other displays, and almost all of them also struggled with the color accuracy.

 

Since I've stared at laptop screens (which maybe aren't 100% accurate but are certainly closer than the gaming monitors I've tried) for tens of thousands of hours over the course of the past few years, I'm very used to how things are supposed to look. From what I saw, monitors are either made for gaming (high refresh rates, low color accuracy), or work (low refresh rates, high(er) color accuracy), and I was hoping that getting a calibrator would allow me to get a more accurate picture while also keeping a 144hz+ refresh rate, something like what the laptops I've used for years showed.

 

Thus came my question from the original post, how do calibrators work? I couldn't find a simple answer, does the calibration only apply in so called "color-managed apps", or would performing it improve the picture quality overall? I found a video about the exact monitor I own, and apparently calibration fixes pretty much all of it's color issues, so if the results are system-wide then spending 150 bucks on a calibrator could be a worthwhile investment, certainly better than trying to find a monitor that fits my criteria while also being color accurate out of the box. If the results only apply to creative software, then getting one wouldn't fix my issues.

 

Hopefully that's a bit clearer.

I see, well yes calibration is mostly just for color accurate work like serious content creation or printing and so on. There are calibrators that professionally calibrate TVs and such, but after a certain point it's not that significant for entertainment use. 

 

Unless your monitor is broken in some way or faulty, it's giving you the best it can do and calibrating is not for this type of screen, it's for screens that cost a little more and are made for serious color accurate work.

 

I did see a video when I searched for it where it explains how this screen comes with color issues, I don't suggest buying a calibrator for this as the monitor itself is relatively cheap and not worth spending that much more on a calibrator. Just play with the black levels settings and colors until you get something you like and leave it be imo. turn HDR off on it as it's a gimmick on screens like this, get the main colors and black levels to what you can be happy with and leave it be. I wouldn't spend money on a calibrator for a screen such as this

[OddOod]

On 6/21/2025 at 6:23 AM, Botul said:

get the best picture I can

The "best" picture isn't necessarily the most accurate. 

[Botul]

On 6/23/2025 at 8:33 PM, OddOod said:

The "best" picture isn't necessarily the most accurate. 

True, at the end of the day it comes down to personal preference, and for me the best picture is the one that's most accurate to what the author of whatever I'm looking at intended.

[rilanglin]

"Totally understand the frustration — getting monitors to look as good as a laptop can be weirdly difficult. I also found that ICC profiles help, but it can be tricky since not all programs respect them. For everyday use, I think the improvements from a basic calibrator like the SpyderX are noticeable, especially for reducing color tints or weird contrast. But yeah, it's definitely not a magic fix for every situation. Good luck figuring out what works for your setup!"