Will Intel release new driver for Gen9 Integrated Graphics to solve Dell XPS color banding issue?

[donkol]

I hope someone at Intel can answer this question for me. I just bought a new Dell XPS only to find out that it has a known bad color banding problem with the UHD+ displays (described here: https://www.dell.com/support/kbdoc/en-us/000130943/color-banding-with-dell-premier-color-application-with-intel-integrated-graphics).

In the 'solution' it says: "The next generation of Intel-integrated graphics will improve the color banding (contouring) behavior." Is this true? Are you at Intel actually working on this or is this just Dell passing the buck? If you are fixing this, is there any estimate of the time frame?

I have about three weeks left to return the laptop if there is no hope of fixing this problem. However, if it will truly be fixed, I will keep it.

Thanks so much for your help!

[donkol]

Sorry for the bump, but this is time-sensitive. I really need an answer in the next day or two if possible. Thanks!

[n_scott_pearson]

I would presume that, if Dell has reported this issue to Intel via the proper channels, Intel will be looking into a fix with some priority. When such a fix might be made available is not something that we can comment on here, however. When it is available, this will be made known. I would also bet, in a case like this, the fix would be made available to you through Dell.

...S

[donkol]

Thank you for your response, Scott.

My concern is exactly this in your message: "if Dell has reported this issue to Intel via the proper channels".

It would be great to know whether this has actually happened!

[AndrewG_Intel]

Hello @donkol

Thank you for posting on the Intel® communities.

We apologize for the delay in the response since the support was not available from December 25th to 27th due to the holidays. This was already notified on the Intel Community Home page under "Announcements".

We will check this internally and provide more details as soon as possible. We will do our best to provide more information quickly. However, we as a community do not have visibility about unreleased drivers/products so we cannot guarantee we will have an answer by the time you mentioned but we will do our best.

Also, in the link provided, it says "The next generation of Intel-integrated graphics will improve the color banding (contouring) behavior". This might mean that the issue could be addressed (only?) in newer Graphics Processing Unit (GPU) generations as we don't see any reference on that article saying for instance that the fix will be implemented via driver updates. Also, the article suggests contacting Dell Technical Support* for further questions about this so if you have urgency for more details we also recommend trying to check this directly with DELL* support.

We will be posting back in the thread as soon as we have more information available. Thank you for your understanding.

In the meanwhile, please run the Intel® System Support Utility (Intel® SSU) and attach the report to this thread to gather more details about your system in case we need it.

• Download the Intel® SSU and save the application on your computer
• Open the application, check the "Everything" checkbox, and click "Scan" to see the system and device information. The Intel® SSU defaults to the "Summary View" on the output screen following the scan. Click the menu where it says "Summary" to change to "Detailed View".
• To save your scan, click Next and click Save.

Best regards,

Andrew G.

Intel Customer Support Technician

*Links to third-party sites and references to third-party trademarks are provided for convenience and illustrative purposes only. Unless explicitly stated, Intel® is not responsible for the contents of such links, and no third-party endorsement of Intel® or any of its products is implied.

[donkol]

Thank you for looking into this, Andrew!

I will download and run Intel SSU tomorrow morning.

However, regarding your comment about drivers and Dell support, I had contacted them previously to reaching out to Intel. Their response was:

"Thank you for writing us. As per the update in the article there is no hardware change which will be required for the color banding. A registry fix has been deployed, Intel will release the DHC (color banding) drivers for these devices soon, which will address this issue. You will get an update on the Dell website for the same once this driver will be released."

You can see why I contacted you, since the issue has been known about for at least a year, and the Dell page for that issue hasn't been updated for 3 months. My confidence isn't high that Dell informed Intel in the first place.

If you can tell me whether this is an open issue at Intel and that something is being done on your end, I think it would make a lot of Dell XPS owners happy. Thanks so much for your efforts!

[donkol]

Andrew: Here is the ssu report you requested

[AndrewG_Intel · Accepted solution]

Hello @donkol

Thank you for your patience in this matter.

After checking this internally, we would like to confirm that Dell* has notified this issue to Intel; however, the fix will be made available via Dell* as it may require customization in the DCH driver for the affected systems.

In this case, the best place for information is going to be contacting Dell*. We recommend keeping checking the DELL* websites and their official channels of support for more details about new driver updates, Release notes, news, etc. Dell* Support

Best regards,

Andrew G.

Intel Customer Support Technician

*Links to third-party sites and references to third-party trademarks are provided for convenience and illustrative purposes only. Unless explicitly stated, Intel® is not responsible for the contents of such links, and no third-party endorsement of Intel® or any of its products is implied.

[donkol]

Thank you, Andrew.

It does sound like Dell was indeed kicking the can down to Intel. While it is distressing to hear we need to wait for Dell to make things right, I appreciate the information.

Just in case you are interested in how this is affecting Dell owners, you can check out the thread here:

https://www.dell.com/community/XPS/XPS-15-9500-color-banding/td-p/7690844

There have been some proposed "solutions" which are merely workarounds. However, I guess that's all we have for now.

Thanks again.

[AndrewG_Intel]

Hello @donkol

Thank you for your response and for sharing the link to the Dell* community thread to have more visibility about this behavior and its impact. This feedback has been properly documented.

Since the thread has been marked as "Answered" and the next step is waiting for the fix to be made available via Dell*, we will proceed to close this inquiry now.

If you need any additional information, please submit a new question as this thread will no longer be monitored.

It has been a pleasure to assist you.

Best regards,

Andrew G.

Intel Customer Support Technician