Turn your iPhone into a color-matching machine with this impressive sensor

By

This color sensor is a hue-ge help for painters.
Match any real-world color in an instant with this tiny sensor.
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

Your walls might not be the color they used to be. Even if you know the exact color and brand of paint, natural fading can make it hard to paint over the daily dings a home tends to endure.

Instead of searching for a color you remember, find the actual color of your walls (and pretty much anything else) with the Nix Mini. It’s a portable color sensor that quickly scans virtually any surface and tells you exactly what color it is, complete with paint suggestions.

For a limited time, this little gadget is on sale for $83.95 (regularly $99).

Real-world color scanner

The Nix Mini works by scanning any surface — including painted walls, vinyl, leather, plastic, fabric, dyes — and matching it to more than 100,000 brand-name paint colors or color codes. When shopping for paint, you can browse color matches from major brands like Benjamin Moore, Dulux, and Sherwin-Williams.

What helps Nix get the color right every time isn’t just the advanced scanner. When you press it to a surface, it blocks everything except the light it generates from its own calibrated source. So you’ll get accurate results whether it’s the dead of night or the golden hour.

The color sensor connects to your iPhone (or Android device) via Bluetooth. Plus, you can take the Nix Mini practically anywhere. It measures just 1.5 inches by 1.5 inches, and the battery is rechargeable.

Match any paint color

When you’re painting, guesswork won’t do. Whether covering a scuff on your walls or trying to capture your favorite flower on a canvas, not-quite-right is still wrong.

“We used the Nix to match paint over drywall repairs,” wrote one confirmed reviewer. “It worked very well, a pleasant surprise, since the old paint had changed slightly (oxidized) from one repair location to another.”

Save on Nix Mini color sensor

See the true colors of the world around you, and then paint it yourself. Get the Nix Mini color sensor V2 for $83.95 (regularly $99).

Prices subject to change.

Newsletters

Daily round-ups or a weekly refresher, straight from Cult of Mac to your inbox.

  • The Weekender

    The week's best Apple news, reviews and how-tos from Cult of Mac, every Saturday morning. Our readers say: "Thank you guys for always posting cool stuff" -- Vaughn Nevins. "Very informative" -- Kenly Xavier.