Many graphics designers use advanced programs like Coral Draw, Photoshop, Illustrate, and other designing solutions. Almost all designing programs come with a color picker, but it is limited to basic features. Even Photoshop doesn’t have advanced color picker options, and we don’t know why developers don’t do something about it.
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What is the best external color picker solution?
The biggest challenge is to find an ideal solution because you will find tons of options in the market. However, it would take a long time for the readers to check out each & every alternative to find an ideal solution. We have cherry-picked three-color picker programs that will change the landscape in your designing work.
Just Color Picker (free)
Just Color Picker is a free-to-use program available for Windows & macOS machines. The developers added features in the tool that makes a difference in the output, such as color code formats, where you got HTML, RGB, HWB, HEX, HSL, HSB/HSV, CMYK, CMY, and Delphi. Designers no longer have to worry about precision while picking the correct color scheme because you got 3x, 9x, and 15x magnifiers.
Designers don’t search for the fonts and use the tool to learn about the fonts used in the subject. The text tool allows the users to pause the frame and evaluate whether it is readable and fits in the color combination or not. Don’t spend a single second on manual pixel points because you have an inbuilt tool for it.
The program works with Windows & macOS, and it supports popular formats like Adobe Photoshop (.aco) and GIMP (.gpl) file formats. The developers have added support for multi displays because many professionals have multiple displays connected to one PC.
We conducted a virus check on the executable file and found it to be 100% secure.
We love portable programs, and that’s where JCP shines because you don’t have to install it to use it. Just Color Picker is available in many languages like Chinese (traditional & simplified), Hungarian, Danish, Japanese, German, Finnish, Swedish, Russian, Portuguese, Norwegian, Czech, etc.
Instant Color Picker
Instant Color Picker was a commercial product back in the days, but the developer chooses to make it free-to-use later on. ICP is freeware and an advanced color picker for Windows 10 PC, and there are many reasons why you should try it.
There is one way to describe ICP, and that is “simplified”, and that’s all there is to it. We have to appreciate the developer in this case because the interface is straightforward and does not have unnecessary functions.
You have the zoom option with 8x, and you have a 3×3 – 5×5 pixel range in the program. The Young Smart developer chooses a different path to support popular photo editors like Photoshop, where you don’t need a compatible file format. You can copy what’s on the clipboard and paste it in Photoshop, and that’s how you can paste the color scheme.
There are no color value limitations as you can capture the color in RGB, HSV, HSL, CMYK, ActionScript, HTML Hex, VC++, Delphi, and VB. Many enterprises prefer custom file format, and you can create your color format or save it as images (color swatches).
We scanned the executable file in the virus scanner and found two “false positives “, so you don’t have to worry about the threats.
ICP (Instant Color Picker) is freeware, and you can use it for commercial purposes and home users. There is no plan or premium version, and it is 100% free, so do not hesitate to try it.
Pixie (free)
Pixie is a lightweight color picker tool for Windows, and it is designed for basic users. If you are looking for a color picker that is lightweight, portable and does the job, then Pixie is for you. The developer approach for the design is rather simple & straightforward and it will take less than a minute to learn & execute.
The straightforward user-interface shows you color codes like HEX, RGB, CMYK, and HSV. The program follows few shortcuts, so you don’t have to use advanced options.
- Ctrl + Alt + C is the shortcut to copy HTML.
B. Ctrl + Alt + X is the shortcut for color mixer.
C. Ctrl + Alt + Z is the shortcut for zooming on the subject.
Pixie is a lightweight Windows program that is sized at 11.5KB only, and it is available in a portable version or in a ZIP file. You don’t have to install it, which is one of the strongest points of the Pixie color picker.
We have tested the executable file in the virus scanner and found two “false positives “, so you don’t have to worry about the threats.
There is no way to update the Pixie automatically, so you have to check for the latest updates once in a few months manually. Pixie is 100% freeware and there is no premium plan, and it works smoothly on Windows 10 20H2 edition.
Bottom Line
We have shortlisted three best color pickers for Windows PC and it starts from advanced program to the lightweight edition. All of the color pickers are available for free-of-charge and you don’t have to spend a single penny on premium plan. Let us know what do you think about best color pickers in the comment section below.
