ArgyllCMS vs QuickGamma

ArgyllCMS is a free, open-source ICC-compatible color management system for creating profiles and calibrating devices. Its command-line tools support scanners, cameras, film recorders, displays, and RGB, CMY and CMYK printers. It can create device-link profiles with options such as video calibration standards and 3D LUTs, and work with spectral samples, selectable illuminants and observer types, and paper fluorescent-whitener compensation. Color conversion tools handle 8-bit raster data and fully accurate 16-bit conversion. Documentation lists direct support for measurement instruments from JETI, Klein, X-Rite and Calibrite, DataColor and other manufacturers; some chart results can be converted into Argyll CGATS format. ArgyllCMS runs on Windows, macOS and Linux, but does not include a graphical interface. DisplayCAL, The Little Argyll GUI and CoCa are listed as front ends that use it. The package is licensed under AGPLv3; commercial licensing is available for code copyrighted by Graeme Gill through ArgyllPRO. On Linux, native display calibration and profiling under Wayland are not currently supported; the maker recommends X11 for color-managed displays.

QuickGamma is a Windows utility for adjusting monitor gamma without expensive calibration hardware. It can correct gamma to 2.2 and create an ICC profile with a VCGT tag containing data used to load a graphics card’s lookup table (LUT). QuickProfileLoader is installed automatically with the utility and can load a monitor’s LUT from that profile data. The listed capabilities also include LUT calibration, ICC profile export and multi-monitor calibration. Version 4.1.0.0 requires Windows 10 or higher; its installation file includes 32-bit and 64-bit versions, help files and no runtime libraries. QuickGamma is free for personal use, while commercial use requires written consent from the author. Private users may distribute the complete, unaltered installer, but not individual components. The author offers no express or implied warranties and invites donations. A SHA-512 checksum is published for checking downloaded file integrity. The maker also lists utilities for reading LUT and VCGT data and creating monitor ICC profiles.