Datacolor SpyderX Pro: Monitor Calibration designed
Datacolor SpyderX Pro: Monitor Calibration designed for serious Photographers and Designers
System requirements
- Windows 7 32/64, Windows 8 32/64, Windows 10 32/64
- Mac OS X 10.10, 10.11, 10.12, 10.13, 10.14
- Monitor Resolution 1280×768 or greater
- 16-bit video card (24-bit recommended)
- 1GB of available RAM
- 500MB of available hard disk
- Internet connection for software download
About Apple Liquid Retina XDR displays of the 14″/16″ MacBook Pro – 2021
The internal displays of this laptop class can be calibrated if you have installed the macOS Monterey 12.3 (or higher) update. Make sure you have installed the update prior to installation. External monitors connected to these MacBook Pro laptops can still be calibrated with SpyderX.
Status 15.03.2022
Supported display technologies, languages, USB protocolls
- All recent computer display types
- Supported languages: English, French, Italian, German, Spanish, Russian, Japanese, Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese, Korean
- USB 1.1, USB 2.X and USB 3.X
- USB A plug, also compatible with USB A>C adaptors for use in USB C ports
 |  | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Feature Description | |||
| Single Click & Wizard Calibration Capability | ✓ | ✓ | Fast & easy calibration modes |
| Multiple Monitor Support / Ambient Light Monitoring & Profile Switching / Before & After Review | ✓ | ✓ | Supports calibration of multiple displays / Can adjust for room light changes / Shows before & after comparison of display calibration |
| Display Mapping & Analysis Tools | Basic | Advanced | Offers tools to check the quality of your display |
| Calibration Setting Choices | 12 | Unlimited | Calibration options (combinations of gamma, white point and brightness) |
| Expert Console Calibration | ✓ | All-in-one calibration control panel | |
| Video & Cinema Calibration Targets | ✓ | Calibration targets for motion work | |
| Soft Proof of Print Results | ✓ | Soft proofing with print output preview | |
| Projector Calibration | ✓ | Calibrates digital projectors | |
| Display Matching in Studio | ✓ | Defines a studio standard for all displays to be matched (StudioMatch) | |
| Visual Fine Tuning for Side-by-side Display Match | ✓ | Precisely tune side-by-side displays |
| Weight: | 0.5 Pounds |
| Size: | SpyderX Pro |
| Dimensions: | 7.6 x 7.6 x 4.4 centimetres |
| Brand: | Datacolor |
| Model: | SXP100 |
| Part: | SXP100 |
| Colour: | White |
| Batteries Included: | 1 Lithium Ion batteries required. |
| Dimensions: | 7.6 x 7.6 x 4.4 centimetres |
| Size: | SpyderX Pro |
Excellent screen calibratio
Used for matching a dual monitor system for photo editing . Does the job.
Very easy to follow instructions.
Instructions and screens easy to follow. Simple to use. Makes a difference.
Excellent colour calibratio
Purchased this item to colour calibrate my computer to match my imaged. Worked very well also matched the image for printing. The results were excellent. Very pleased. I bought it when the price was reduced and wasn’t that much more than the Pro version. I would recommend
Very pleased
I used this to calibrate my iMac which some people say should not be necessary but although the difference between “out of the box” and the calibrated version was marginal there is definitely a difference. “Out of the box” was quite cold whereas the calibrated version took the coldness off and matched my prints much better. Anyone with a Mac who is wondering “is it worth it” I would say if you are serious about your photography and want a more accurate print I would say but one. If you just need your computer for everyday use you may not notice the difference so save your money.
A great screen calibrator for any digital edito
This is very quick and easy to install. I use it on my Galaxy Pro2 laptop for photo editing in Lightroom and Photoshop.
I like the confidence it gives me that the colours i see on the screen are as close as possible to as seen IRL.
Perfect for professional photo work
I wish I bought this years ago. My new monitor was calibrated from factory but colours weren’t as accurate as they should have been. This solved all issues
Great hardware, not so great software
I’ve been using a datacolour calbrater for years but I bought this because my old one seemed off, this works much faster, my only issue is the software is just not very good, it’s very basic, although you can use other software tutorials online
Good Product,Easy to use.
I used this product to calibrate my Dell all in one pc as I am an amateur photographer and noticed, the colours were not showing great on my screen. I researched this, sent Datacolour a question, asking if I didnt like the way my screen got calibrated, could I return the screen to what it was before. it took them 5 days to say yes, I could return it to default. I then putchased it and really happy with the results, made a big difference.
Firstly the cable wasn’t long enough so had to order an extension cable, then it wouldn’t work, with a message stating, monitor not found, so got I in touch with datacolour who sent me a list of instructions of possible solutions.
This was a bit O.T.T, for me so I had to have help but finally it worked
I’ve pasted it all below for anyone else who has a similar problem… phew!
Datacolour were very helpful though.
this is what they suggested….
Please go to the Windows Device Manager – Monitors section.
Check if the monitors are listed with any messages e.g. a symbol with a little error pointing down. This means the display is deactivated under Windows (but still working – a Windows error).
If so please do a right mouse click and select activate to activate the display again.
If the monitor is listed with no messages:
Please check if you have Google Photos Backup installed (stop the execution) and test.
Please also check if you have TeamViewer installed (uninstall) and test. You can install afterwards again the Team Viewer, just do not install the TeamViewer display driver (not needed to run TeamViewer).
Please also check if you have the meeting application join.me installed, check for the join.me.launcher” in the Windows Autostart folder and remove.
Please also check if you have the program Splashtop installed. If so uninstall the display driver that comes with that program.
Please also check if you have the program Remote Utilities for Windows installed. If so uninstall that program.
Please also check if you have the program LogMeIn installed. If so reinstall the monitor drivers from the monitor manufacturer.
Please also check if you have the program SunLogin Remote Control installed. If so reinstall the monitor drivers from the monitor manufacturer.
I think this device is the ideal price, at 99 pounds, for the average home user that just wants to be sure they’re getting accurate colours and gamma from their monitor. It’s fast and easy to use, it doesn’t have as many features as some of the more expensive calibrators, but you only really need those advanced features if you’re doing professional photo/web work.
There is one small issue I’ve found with the product, if your room is cold then the device gets too cold to work, the software reports an error, the fix is simply to let it warm up, either by holding it or just placing over the monitor for a few mins. For those who want a more detailed and accurate calibration you can use the DisplayCal software with this device, which is more feature rich than the software it comes with.
is it good enough?
The SpyderX Pro came in good time all in tacked and works fine. easy to set up.
need to know what computer screen you have and bits of info you should know, apart from that set up was easy 2 screens calabrated in less than 10 mins. great buy.
I’m not sure why there are so many negative reviews of this product. It has performed perfectly on test today after following the instructions. My 2 monitors are from totally different manufacturers, with completely different colour profiles, brightness and contrast stats. I now cannot tell them apart. After following the instructions to the letter with the provided software I’m overjoyed, and frankly anyone that says it’s not working properly either doesn’t know what they’ve purchased, or cannot follow basic instructions.
Just a great idea for any professional out there
This is brilliant for professional photographers and videographers out there. Made both my laptop and desktop screens way more accurate and my photos look better because of it. Highly recommend you take the leap and just buy it. Not an exciting product at all, but a good one nonetheless
Good profiles created
I bought this to replace a older model that I broke and on 3 different brand 27 inch screens it has created profiles that make all three screens the same hue and saturation something the version 3 never managed.
Invaluable produc
Great product and easy and quick to use BUT ONLY WHEN YOU’VE FOUND THE RIGHT SOFTWARE online!
I found the company’s helpline great after one abortive attempt to set up the Spyder.
Easy to use but software can be buggy
It’s fairly easy to use but the software has some issues around measuring the white point. I couldn’t get to calibrate correctly using my work laptop it would continuely raise an error while measuring the white point.
Accurate prints!
I bought it because I wanted precise prints and that’s what I got. Very easy to install and the calibration process itself is super fast. If you also spend time to soft proof you photos using printers/papers icc profiles, you are a going to get precise and predictable results. Recommended.
Very easy to set up.
I had been planning on buying a monitor collaborator for some time but not being that computer literate had been a bit worried about how I would cope with setting it up. I needn’t have worried, the Datacolor SpyderX Pro makes setting up a breeze, totally hassle-free and the result on screen made the purchase very worthwhile.
Easy to Use
Did not recognise Asus monitor at first , but recognised the old HP. A little bit fiddly pulling out the extension cord to fit on screen – does not feel very strong worried about snapping the cord.
Managed to match up two monitors with a little bit of after adjustment afterwards. Does not seem to have a setting for ProPhoto which is a pity as I work in ProPhoto. Hence the 4 stars only.
A must for correct colour renditio
Have been using the Datacolor Spyder3 Express for nine years now, and though software updates ceased a few years back, it still does the job. However, on recently purchasing a new desktop computer, decided to update to the SpyderX Pro to replace using on my laptop and to set up on the new computer. It does have more features, i.e., measures the room lighting conditions, which the Spyder3 didn’t, is more intuitive, and does an excellent job of calibrating your screen.
It’s a must to have your screen correctly calibrated, even if you think the colour balance looks OK. It’s particularly important if printing your images, but even if not, you need to have your screen correctly calibrated – just sharing images digitally the colours can look off to someone else (or even on another of your own computers). It does help of course that whoever you’re sharing with has their screen correctly calibrated! Assuming they do, you can be confident that your images will look correct to others (or even on another of your own computers).
I recommend this product, and though not cheap, it will last you years.
Brilliant bit of Ki
Bought this item as i was getting a lot of eye strain and headaches when using my pc, it sorted out the brightness of my monitor (you have to adjust manually but it tells you when you are in the right zone) and then automatically sorts out the colour ranges (or can be done manually if your monitor allows it) which is astounding the difference it makes.
it loads the colour profile when you start your pc. the only fiddly bit is finding out how your monitor is lit but a quick internet search soon finds that out.
Easy to use and very fas
This product is simple to use and accurate on the colours, it has really sorted out my high gamut BenQ Adobe RGB display and the colours are really natural now. It also lowered the brightness of my monitor which gives a more accurate reflection of prints as when my monitor was too bright the prints always came out looking a touch on the dark side due to my monitor giving a false brighter view of the scene.
Works great.
Spyder is great that it works well, but installation was far from easy and clear, there were no instructions of exactly what to do in the box and my partner had to look online and could only find guidance in German.
That said, once he did get it set up and working he calibrated his monitor touched up a photo he’d been working on, and the printed version come out much more like what he’d seen on the screen.
So even with the difficulty setting up, we’re still very happy with it.
Colours will never be the same agai
Well if your into colour printing this is a must have, improves colour balance, what you see is what you print, it takes just a few minutes to work it’s magic, if your still not sure, look on YouTube. I’m glad I bought one.
As a long-time owner and very satisfied user of a DataColor Spyder4 Elite Screen calibration tool, I was tempted to upgrade to the SpyderX Pro device following a discount offered by the manufacturer to existing customers.
The device arrived promptly and I duly installed the accompanying software. However the installation proved incomplete as the “Utility” element of the software initially failed to install and when I contacted DataColor’s Technical Support team, the advice that I received in the first instance was not very helpful.
Ultimately and after two further rounds of correspondence with Technical Support, I was able to achieve a full installation and the device now seems to be working as it should.
In all honesty however, I’m not totally convinced that the SpyderX offers the promised significant improvements over my original Spyder4 Elite! However as a member of a local camera club, who regularly participates in print and DPI competitions, time will tell whether my not inconsiderable investment in the “X” proves to be money well spent.
My current uncertainty is the main reason for not awarding the full five stars.
Addendum after 6 Months’ use.
Having now used the SpyderX Pro for almost 6 months, I can confirm that it seems to have delivered on its promise so far. It’s easy to use and certainly much quicker in performing re-calibrations each month. One thing I have yet to try however, is run it in conjunction with the open source “DisplayCAL” software, which several other reviewers of the SpyderX Pro have recommended, instead of the proprietary software supplied by DataColor. It would be interesting to see how this software compares.
Well-developed monitor calibrato
Monitor calibration used to be a titanic faff – and create as many problems as it ‘solved’. This thing is so easy to use – and the punch-line is that its one of the cheapest on the market. I’ve got the base-model ‘Pro’ version, and don’t regret it – the Elite version adds a few knobs and whistles that even the most serious amateur photographer can easily do without.
Of course, there are calibrators that will set-up both the monitor and your printer – however, they are considerably more expensive, and I’ve never been convinced of claims to match an additive colour process (the monitor) to a subtractive colour process (the printer/a print-out). Physics will only allow such a calibration to get ‘sort-of-close-ish’ – I’ve never seen a truly close match in over 35 years as a professional graphic designer. Refining the set-up of my inkjet printer, thought, is the next step.
Have only been using my SpyderX Pro for a short while so can’t honestly/definitively comment on how it effects on-screen image processing and the final print-outs/hard-copies until after a little more experimentation. However, it is immediately obvious that monitors are over-bright by a good margin – presumably to add ‘punch’ to on-screen image display, which would explain the usually over-dark printouts I’ve experieinced before applying the SpyderX Pro.
Works out of the box, don't forget your Mini Tripod to make full use of the functionality.
Works exactly how you expect out of the box!
Follow the instructions, calibrate your monitor and buy a mini tripod so it can sit on your desk and stay current with the room brightness. Especially if you have multiple monitors or utilize a laptop.
worked for me after spending a lot of money
It’s improved may print out quality, put I found the need to buy a additional item the Datacolor SpyderPrint – S4SR100 very expensive, but it did what it says on the tin, I take a lot of photos so I could justify the price.
A necessity for creatives
I managed to calibrate my laptop screen and external monitor quickly and easily. Very pleased with results. Finally I can edit my photographs correctly, skin tones never looked that good. Once you calibrate your screen correctly and see the difference, there is no coming back.
A major improvement to visual quality and accuracy
Initially brought to view photos as it was intended to be seen, for editing and does well for games aswell, but software lacks adjustments for printing purposes (that’s where displaycal comes in). I was thinking xrite i1d3 but spyderx is new hardware.
I had used 3 of them, one of them was perfect after calibration with supplied software, the others leaned a tiny bit towards the red or increased contrast, perhaps due to slight hardware differences but all 3 of them were identicle with displaycal.
The price is high at the moment and may drop later.
The SpyderX supplied software is limited and the free Displaycal helps but the support is in it’s early stages.
Essential bit of kit.
I’m a full time wedding photographer and colour consistent is very important for me. I have had my Benq monitor for just over a year and I realised my colours were matching the prints, phone or iPad screen. After reading lots of reviews I decided to go with SpyderX. It was very easy to install,very straight forward. Calibrating was just as easy,only a few adjustments and few clicks on the screen. It did make a big difference, my colour are a lot more accurate now ,although I have to say it does give a slight reddish tint after calibration but everything else seems fine. If you are serious about your colours and white balance you probably need one of these. I will write another update after a few months of use.
Spyder X Pro
Like others who have commented on this item, there own software leaves alot to be desired. My screen was so bright after calibration that I needed sunglasses. I have used DisplayCal and is much better, for a freebie program you can’t go wrong.