On Aug 11, 2014, at 1:41 PM, Mike Strickler <info@mspgraphics.com> wrote:

Hi Ernst,

I haven't been following this discussion and didn't see Gary's post, but I can tell you that I had this conversation with Tom Lianza and Ray Cheydleur at X-Rite some time ago, and if they are looking in they might fill in the details. Short answer is no, it is not a simple retrofit for the iSis. The scarcity of M1-capable instruments on the market is an indication how nontrivial this design change likely is.

That and, based on pure uninformed speculation here, it seems like a good time to revisit the design of the iSis and updated it based on feedback and lessons learned since it was introduced. It’s a nice thought that one would be able to just replace a component and ‘drive off’ in an M1 capable device but I don’t know how practical this would be. It would certainly have to go back to X-Rite and be retro-fitted, recalibrated, recertified, etc. That said, the price range of the iSis does make it a bit of a challenge to just buy a new one. Still, M1 is the future - at least as far as we can see it today. So it’s really a matter of when we upgrade, not if. I also think that it’s inevitable that X-Rite will update the iSis to include M1-style measurements. The alternative is for them to eventually discontinue the device and I think it’s been successful enough for them to want to continue its line. It certainly fits a need for rapid measurements and the integrated barcode reader is a boon for the automation of color monitoring for systems like Maxwell and others. So it really comes down to when… and I don’t expect to hear anything from them until it’s about ready to go (as companies tend to do these days) As I said, this is based on pure uninformed speculation here…. and a great willingness to be a beta tester! regards, Steve