Previously named X-Rite i1 Display Pro, the brilliant Calibrite ColorChecker Display Pro is a monitor calibrator that offers a whole lot of features and options, although you do pay for them. The more expensive SpyderX Elite (see number 5) offers some extra features, but for most people, this standard option will be all they need for reliable monitor calibration. We find Datacolor's software, which comes with the device, is easy to use, allowing us to get started calibrating immediately. It detects light conditions to ensure a monitor looks its best wherever you're working. That said, it's still one of the best monitor calibrators we've tried for overall value, offering useful advanced features like multi-monitor support. The SpyderX Pro is now the cheapest option in the Datacolor calibration range (the former Spyder5 range had a budget 'Express' model). If you calibrate your monitors regularly (and we recommend you do), the faster calibration can save you quite a bit of time in the long run. SpyderX monitor calibrators use a new lens-based sensor system that makes calibration faster while also increasing accuracy so you can be even more confident in your screen's colour accuracy. Datacolor and Calibrite both offer several models, with a standard option and a more pro model with additional features, plus 'studio' packages that can also calibrate printers and bundles that offer other tools as well as the monitor calibrator.ĭatacolor is one of the best-known brands when it comes to monitor calibration, and it's followed up its Spyder5 range of monitor calibrators with SpyderX, which we've found to improve on nearly every aspect of the previous models. When it comes to choosing the best monitor calibrator, we find that really it's a toss-up between two very good brands: Datacolor's Spyder X range and Calibrite's ColorChecker (Wacom also has a calibrator of its own designed for its drawing tablets if you're using one of them). You can learn more about why monitor calibration is so important at the bottom of this guide. You should use these roughly every couple of months to keep your screen calibrated. These tools are physical pieces of hardware that actually look at your monitor. There are downloadable apps that claim to be able to calibrate screens, but they really can't compare with using one of the best monitor calibrator tools. The risk this poses for creatives is clear: you can all too easily under or over-saturate or grade colours in a way that looks just fine on your screen but looks terrible to a client or when printed. As a consequence of all this, even while you might think the images you see on your screen look great, they might not necessarily show the colours that you'll get on another screen or printed out on paper. Ambient lighting also impacts on how a display looks. Even very good monitors all show colours differently straight out of the box, and one monitor will fluctuate in its output over time.

Spyder 4 elite colorimeter