Envy 15 IPS Red vs. Orange tally

For Envy 15 (2011) owners, this is a tally of if you find your IPS' color gamut to display proper/decent reds, or if they appear orange to you. Ditto for if you find violent to be blue.

Whether it's a big or small issue to you, that doesn't really matter. Just want to see how common the red issue is.

Yes, "my reds look to orange" is a typo. Crap.

 

I get the orangish tint with no calibration, but its not enough to be a deal breaker for me, at least not yet

 

Would have been funny if it said "My reds look to orange, eh?"

Canadians. Too much beer to type.

 

To those who do not have the problem please post pics..

 

If they're all the same model panel by the same manufacturer, then they will all look the same and have this problem.

 

Totally agree, but a few people have said their colors look just fine, and another has said it's not a widespread issue - so I figured it would be good to confirm what we (mostly) know to be true

 

This looks red to me

http://www.laptopmag.com/images/uploads/ppress/43563/HP Envy 2011_g2.jpg

http://www.laptopmag.com/images/uploads/ppress/43563/HP-Envy-2011_movie.jpg

http://www.laptopmag.com/images/uploads/r304/32628.jpg

The pictures are from this review and they are have the IPS screen

HP Envy 15 (2012)

 

well they also say

 

Same here 10char

 

Yes, if only they had said "orange" instead of dull.

The best thing about reading these threads for days and expecting the worst is I'm hoping that when my machine finally arrives hopefully on Thursday, I'll be able to handle it. I will take photos against my factory calibrated Dell U2410.

 

To truly test and/or see the orange reds, everyone needs to check using the same method. The easiest way to see it is to open MS Paint, and fill the screen with a custom color of 255,0,0. You'll see it looks more orange then red.

make the canvis size 1920 x 1080, fill it with the color and hit F11 for fullscreen. If you don't see orange either you magically have a different panel, or are color blind

I think the OP should put this little test in the first post and have them do it before answering the poll.

edit: OP should put 1920 x 1080P panel in title as well

 

Will respond to this poll when I (finally) get mine.

 

I got the orange...

 

Well... http://www.laptopmag.com/images/uploads/ppress/43563/HP-Envy-2011_movie.jpg is a screenshot, not a photo, so if your monitor can display reds, then you'll see them. The other two are the same image and look like a stock photo, not something taken by a reviewer.

 

I posted this in the envy 15 owners thread, and I'm reposting it here:

*********************


The problem with everyone who says my reds look fine, is everyone uses a different example that has surrounding colors around it. It more or less creates an optical illusion that your reds look red. Display a 1920x1080 screen filled with red from MS Paint. This is going to be the same exact reason that HP is going to say there is no problems with the displays - They don't properly isolate the problem.

Attached below is one using MS Paint's un-edited RED.



Here's a comparison with the image above between my Envy 15 (IPS 1080P display) and Dell P2310H (TN 1080P)



Now if you want to prove to the world that your laptop does the red color, do the exact same thing. Don't take a picture of an apple with all kinds of other stuff in the background

 

Been lurking around this forum for a couple of weeks since my computer died and I really wanted to like the Envy 15 but those pictures above really demonstrate just how off the red reproduction is.

Thanks for the great compare. I called HP yesterday and inquired about the IPS screen issue and, not surprisingly, the rep claimed complete ignorance.

 

Someone should email this to HP the picture and all and keep sending dozens of emails a day until HP releases a statement..

 

Lvivkse, could you try to hook up ur ENVY to ur tv and see if the color red comes out orange, because if it does it might be software problem wouldn't it then? But if it comes out red on ur tv it would an hardware issue I would assume?

 

interesting theory

wouldn't this be answered just by taking a screen shot though?

 

Or do reviews on hp.com uploading the pics and giving it 1-stars, maybe then they'll admit to the problem

 

Re: HP ENVY 15 IPS - HP Support Forum
I think people at HP know of the problem and just haven't found a way to fix it. They might have to do a recall.

 

I did that (didn't give the one star), but wrote an honest review, and took points off for the display, attached a picture showing the problem as well. But it seems they just censored my review, as I didn't see it as of last night.

 

So they are aware of the issue then.

 

Being aware, and acknowledging the issue are 2 different things.

They could be aware in multiple different ways.
1) The person or persons that admin HP's review sites are not engineers or technical people most likely. So they may just censor reviews they feel are badly representing their product.
2) They don't care what a couple people say vs. the number of laptops sold. cause most people won't notice it right away.
3) They are in denial. And won't listen to some guy who posts on the internet.

all 3 of those examples could show they are aware - but it doesn't mean much without acknowledgement such as "we are aware of the issues customers are reporting, and working on possible ways to remedy the issue and/or replace the panels with a different brand" or just say "It was a trade off between cost and availability, and this is the panel we chose, and unfortunately there is nothing that can be done about it. you are welcome to return in within your 21 day return period if you are not fully satisfied."

Or they can not say anything, leave us in the dark, letting our 21 day return periods lapse. Then say too bad when/if they revise them.

The thing that bothers me is the uncertainty - what are they doing? what are they thinking? will there be fix? will there be a recall? or is it "it is what it is"?

 

ditto, mine was never approved

 

This has already been done. The color issue is definitely hardware related in my opinion.

 

This assumes that it is seen (or ever will be seen) as a real problem by HP, even if they understand and recognize the issue. While we can see this clearly on the photos presented (I'm supposed to get my machine today finally...), we are also likely to be the most conscious and nitpicky of folks. For every 100 machines bought by folks here, there are 1000s bought by average consumers. And if these most discriminating/self-selecting folks on this site are keeping their 15s by a ratio of over 2:1 according to the other poll (and some of those are returning for reasons other than the screen), then I don't imagine that this will rise to the level of a recall (but what do I know).

The few professional reviews out there thus far have each described the screen as being one of the system's highlights (save the comments on the "dull" red on one), and that does not help the cause of folks hoping for a recall/replacement. Most here have said that the color issue is most apparent when comparing to other screens, but less so when held in isolation (though still notiecable for most). I think it is fair to say that most people use their laptop screens in isolation, thus why it doesn't bother many people.

I have bought a new computer for Lightroom use as much as anything, but I've also bought a calibrated Dell U2410 monitor for critical developing, so I am waiting to see whether the issue is something that is going to seriously bother me for everyday use. Obviously if you are a photographer or someone who will use this screen alone for color critical work, then this is probably not the laptop for you.

Perhaps HP will decide to source future screens from a different source, depending on what their supply contract is with LG, but let's also not forget that they decided to source an IPS screen that only has a 60% color gamut. They don't even advertise it as an IPS screen, and they do not pretend that it has better color reproduction than it has. Would I prefer that they had sourced a 95% gamut IPS screen? Of course, but they didn't, and in the end, that is likely just one of the tradeoffs that purchasers will have to weigh among the plethora of other tradeoffs that exist in trying to find the "perfect" laptop. Then again, I very well may be wrong.

Just my 2 cents.

P.S. I'd be ecstatic if this were something that could be fixed...

 

Good reply! This is basically where I'm at with my purchase. I don't use it for graphic design, or anything critically dependent on accurate colors. But it annoys me none the less. The only other thing that bothers me with my envy 15 is the slightly raised trackpad on one edge. But I'm not sure I want to roll the dice and exchange it for another that could have a whole new set of QC flaws.

 

Check out the pics in the review at HP Envy 15 (late 2011) review | The Verge

Red looks red and no mention of color problems in the review. Personally I think the issue is hit or miss right now.

It will be interesting to see what screen tech the 14" Spectre uses.

 

Quoting myself here, as I finally just got my 15 that was shipped on the 27th. I love the machine, keyboard feels good, whole thing looks great, it runs cool on my lap, cooler than my XPS16, and the power brick is 120w, but is half the size of the 115w power brick that came with the DV6T. The screen? Well, it is bright, clear, text is crisp and overall it looks great.

And orange reds. And as some others have mentioned, the green looks like kermit green to me (e.g., on a Windows update progress bar). The first site I went to was CNN. I thought to myself, yeah, I guess that look pretty orange. Then I fired up the XPS16 to CNN next to it, and my wife, who does not tend to be particular about such things, said "Oh my God. OH MY GOD! That's horrible! And it's like puke orange too!"

So what to do. Yes, I have the usb dent, but really, who cares, I wouldn't even send it back for that, as it would be more hassle than it's worth. And I won't send it back for the screen unless I plan to get something else, as I have every confidence that the replacement would look exactly the same.

And I can now emphatically disagree with that reviewer who said the reds are "dull." If by dull you mean you mean orange, than yes.

All this said, I imagine that if I hadn't heard about this issue, and didn't immediately have another (superior) monitor to compare it to, I probably would have sensed something different about the screen, but not sure it would have been immediately apparent why, and I might have gone on my merry way, as many reviewers and owners apparently have.

I don't want to spend $1000 more for the same config in an MBP, and from the MBP screens I've viewed, I don't think they are as sharp as this one, so that has it's own drawbacks. Not to mention OSX, etc. I don't want a butt ugly Dell with poor build quality, and every other computer out there has some sort of limitation or compromise. So, not sure what the next step will be, but at least I have 21 days to decide.

 

Just submitted my 3 star review to the HP site commenting on the color issue. It looks like several of the other color complaints are now posted.

 

Just go mine yesterday and the reds are orange. Havent tried color calibrating with my Spyder yet.
I did try to plug in a Samsung 830 SSD - recovery discs wouldn't work with it the first time around. I'll try again tomorrow, probably send the thing back.

 

It might be that I don't have good eyes for color or I'm just a few lucky one. But so far, my E15 with IPS screen can produce RED and VIOLET. The hardware ids: LGD0323. Also, I reinstalled my E15 windows 7 as clean installation.

 

can you please post a picture? preferably beside a laptop or tv producing red?

thanks

 

Red & Violet color comparison: Lenovo T410 (left) vs Envy 15

 

iTech4Life: Can you do a comparison like the post below and show us the results?

 

call me crazy, but iTech4Life's looks orange to me (i'm on my work computer with a good display at the moment)

or maybe i've just stared at my 15 for too long and am losing my understanding of red

 

Like I said, may be my eyes are not that good with color or my Lenovo T410 has the same problem? I don't know.. You'd be the judge.

 

His comparison shot shows that the Envy 15 gives off a slightly more orange color reproduction that his other laptop, but the difference is minimal. This goes in line with the conclusion that another user who posted various comparison screenshots with photos that had shades of red in them: the Envy 15's ability to produce shades of red (not just pure red [255,0,0]) is inconsistent.

I'm not using a calibrated monitor, but I never have had an issue with seeing red on my Lenovo's display. The comparison you posted is way more similar than other people who posted pictures of the Envy 15 and another monitor displaying pure red. The problem with comparing comparison shots though is that people are using different quality cameras, and it's possible that some cameras are not correctly capturing the color differences, or that some cameras are exaggerating the difference.

 

interesting, hmm

 

Your ENVY looks red too me as well...Lvivkse, that doesnt look red to you?

 

on my 15 i can't tell now; red, orange, same thing

on my desktop at the office it looked orange'ish, but i may have been projecting. i've seen this particular shading of red/orange too much this week. maybe the camera isn't doing the best job.

the color swatch I picked with the dropper is orange for sure though

 

However this comparison doesn't look orange at all...

 

I took a couple of pics last night with both the iPhone 4s and a Nikon d7000 and it's hard to tell with my crap photos, but clear as day in person.

 

But it should show a slight difference..

 

They do, but not enough to post, as it doesn't do the actual difference justice.

 

My apologies if I missed it, but is the Dell P2310H (TN 1080P) red screen from the comparison by Luxferro above being generated from the Envy 15 -- ie is this a second screen attached to the Envy 15 which is generating the orange screen?

If so, then this would mean the GPU is capable of generating deeper reds and I can still use the Envy 15 for (at least some) color work using a second external wider gamut screen.

Or was the Dell P2310H (TN 1080P) red screen generated from a different PC? And would the Envy 15 still produce a too-orange screen on an attached second screen?

 

Nope, it was attached to my desktop. These issues have nothing to do with the GPU.

 

In the picture next to the display portion, the Envy's screen is clearly showing orange, where that circle should be red.

 

I was referring to picture number 26 in the full gallery. Looks red from here.

Here's a snip.