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HP's On-Screen Display Utility released, aims to alleviate Envy 15 screen color complaints
Back when we reviewed HP's latest Envy 15, we found a glaring issue with its otherwise spectacular 1080p IPS display -- namely, its less-than-pleasing color reproduction. Making good on a promise it made back in March, HP has finally released its On-Screen Display Utility software for the machine in hopes of quelling user complaints. If you'll recall, HP stated that the displays are of a higher quality than other laptop panels, which can make colors look odd in comparison. That said, while this gesture is certainly welcome, at least one tipster wrote in to complain that he "wasn't able to get a satisfactory change. It's basically just gamma adjustment and r/g/b sliders." Of course, we've only cited one anecdote here, so if you've got an Envy 15 you'd like to test this on, hit up the source link below. Be sure to let us know your results in the comments. [Thanks, Anthony]
HP acknowledges complaints about the HP Envy 15's color calibration, will release a tuning utility in the 'coming weeks'
If you remember, we had some mixed feelings about the HP Envy 15's IPS display when we took the laptop for a spin earlier this year. On the one hand, it offers wide viewing angles, deep contrast and rich saturation. (Not to mention, when are we ever going to complain about 1080p resolution on a 15-incher?) Still, as many disgruntled forum posters have pointed out, the color calibration seems off against other displays, with reds skewing orange and purples veering into bluish territory. At the time, we reached out to HP for comment and were told to sit tight while the company investigated the issue. Well, today we got an answer, and while the outfit is stopping short of admitting any sort of defect, it is willing to concede the color tuning is different, to say the least. Better yet, it's promising a fix for those incapable of un-seeing it. In a statement, HP's PR team said: HP understands that some customers have expressed concern regarding the appearance of the color red in the ENVY 15 full High Definition (HD) panel, and we wanted to reassure our customers that this panel is functioning properly. HP ENVY Series notebooks use optional premium LED-backlit display panels that have a higher color gamut (range of viewable colors), brightness and viewing angles than many display panels. This means that some colors may appear differently than they do on other displays. A company rep added that over the "coming weeks" HP will release a tuning utility that will allow users to adjust the color settings, making those reds redder, et cetera. It's still unclear how extensive these options will be (after all, HP is still steering the most discerning customers toward its DreamColor offerings), but something's most likely better than nothing, right?
Refresh Roundup: week of December 26, 2011
Your smartphone and / or tablet is just begging to get updated. From time to time, these mobile devices are blessed with maintenance refreshes, bug fixes, custom ROMs and anything in between, and so many of them are floating around that it's easy for a sizable chunk to get lost in the mix. To make sure they don't escape without notice, we've gathered every possible update, hack, and other miscellaneous tomfoolery from the last week and crammed them into one convenient roundup. If you find something available for your device, please give us a shout at tips at engadget dawt com and let us know. Enjoy!
Nokia promises software updates to fix Lumia 800 battery woes
We experienced occasional battery and charging problems when reviewing the Lumia 800, and it looks like others have had issues too. In fact, it's become a sufficiently (un)popular topic on Nokia's support forums to encourage the company to post up a reply, confirming that two software fixes are in the works. The first will target power efficiency and arrive in early December, while the second will follow in January and hopefully improve charging. Only a minority of users are affected, we're told, so it's lucky for them that they're vocal.
