Color depth and bit depth are two terms that are very frequently confused. While the two terms are somewhat interchangeable, bit depth is usually used in reference to printers, scanners, and other hardware devices, while color depth generally refers to monitors and other display devices. Either term refers to the number of colors used to create an image. The larger the number, the more colors, and the smoother and more accurate the image will appear.
Whichever term is used, matching or exceeding the color depth of your computer monitor to that of your printer or scanner will allow you to view images more accurately, so that your prints will look the same as what you see on your screen. For example, if you choose a 24-bit color depth when scanning an image, you want to ensure that your monitor is set for 24-bit mode or higher so that you can see the full color spectrum of the image. When sending an image to a printer, if your color depth is set too low, the printed image may look very different than the image that was on the screen. Follow the steps below to change your computer’s color depth setting.
Changing the Color Depth
- Right-click anywhere on the desktop and choose Screen Resolution in the menu that pops up.
- In the window that opens, click Advanced Settings.
- Click the Monitor tab, then choose the highest setting available in the Colors dropdown box. In most cases, this will be 24-bit or 32-bit.