The latest edition of Portrait Displays’ Calman display calibration software has just been released, with the headline feature being its brand new Aurora Colour Engine.
Calman is the most popular display calibration software in the world, used to verify the performance of professional monitors and TVs and ensure the picture they display is 100% accurate across the screen. The software is used by some of Hollywood’s leading colour professionals, helping them to streamline the various calibration methods used to perfect on-screen images.
Portrait Displays said the Calman 2021 release is the first to come with its new Aurora Colour Engine, which has been built by the company from the ground up and implements its latest breakthroughs in colour science research.
The new engine relies on Unity Grayscale technology to enable some key improvements that few people will understand, but which the company assures us are very considerable. For example, Unity Grayscale enables 3D neutral spline bypass when using a 1D LUT and 3D LUT for calibration, it said. Apparently, that helps to achieve significant improvements such as the reduction or complete elimination of posterisation and banding. It also improves the MatrixLUT formula for calibration, adds 13pt to fixed grid options and additional support for patchsets.
These improvements are apparently a very big deal, with Portrait Displays Technical Evangelist Tyler Pruitt stating that the Aurora Colour Engine is “the biggest upgrade to Calman since AutoCal”. AutoCal is a now very popular function in Calman that helps to automate many calibration settings on supported displays, such as Panasonic’s OLED TVs, making the software more accessible for less technical users.
"We’re very happy to be the ones able to offer Calman users the latest in colour technology time and time again,” Pruitt said.
The Aurora Colour Engine isn’t the only new feature. Far from it, because Calman 202 also comes with a new Patter Insertion option, Calman Ready AutoCal support for LG Electronics’ 2021 TVs, and ASUS HDR Monitor calibration workflows that appear to build on a partnership with ASUS that was first announced last year. Further, users may also benefit from 1D LUT support for the Flanders Cube Generator, assuming they know what that does, as well as the ability to lock design mode on custom workflows.
For those who want a deeper dive into Calman 2021’s new features, the company has a full list on its website.
Portrait Displays said Calman 2021 is available to download now. The company also offers a less featured, Calman Home edition of its software for consumers to calibrate the TV sets in their living rooms.
