Comparison

THETA+ vs HDReye

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

THETA+

Edit and enhance 360° photos and videos with creative effects and animations. Easily share your immersive content on social media platforms. Includes basic video editing tools for a polished final product.

Highlights
  • 360° image editing
  • Little Planet and Soratama effects
  • 360° animation creation
  • Image correction and filters
  • Stamp and text overlay
  • Video trimming and speed adjustment
  • Time lapse video creation
Features
Read full description

Using THETA+, you can crop and edit 360° images freely after shooting them. Not only you can view these images easily but also present creative and new expressions conventional cameras cannot provide. You can share edited images and videos easily on Instagram, Facebook, and other SNS. Editing functions only available for 360° images! ・Simple view functions to change presentations dynamically Adjusting viewpoint positions or zoom amounts, you can change presentations of a 360° image dynamically. Using a button alone, you can transform a 360° image into an earth-like shape called a Little Planet, an image on two screens, or a soratama, so that it is possible to make a 360° image attractive contents easier to present. ・Animation functions to share rotated images in a non-360° environment You can create an animation from a still image by drawing close or pulling in a 360° image and rotating it. Also, you can freely specify a section you want to present, its motion and speed. Since the image is saved as a video after being edited, you can share a 360°-rotated image in a non-360° environment. Basic video editing functions also provided ・While checking a 360° image by rotating it, you can adjust the overall colors using image correction or filter functions. ・You can present a more enjoyable 360° image by adding a stamp or text to it. ・Trimming, double speed editing, BGM, and other 360° video editing functions are also supported. ・You can create a time lapse video easily by combining multiple 360° images. ◇ Environments to support THETA+: * No support is provided for iPod touch and iPad. * Do not refer to App Store's compatibility information but refer to the operating environment specified on the RICOH THETA official website. * Operations are not guaranteed for all terminals. * For future updates, environments or terminals to support THETA+ may change.

About

HDReye

Create custom 360° HDRi images for realistic 3D lighting and compositing directly from your phone. Capture bracketed panoramas and generate 32-bit EXR files for seamless integration with 3D software and AR development.

Highlights
  • Create 360° HDRi images
  • Shoot bracketed multi-exposure panoramas
  • Generate 32-bit .EXR files
  • Realistic 3D lighting and compositing
  • Image-based lighting solution
  • Access to crowdsourced HDRi collection
Features
Read full description

Finally, an app to shoot 360° HDRis with your phone. HDReye is the first and only iOS app for creating custom 360° HDRi images for realistic 3D lighting and compositing. Just select your desired dynamic range, follow the prompts to shoot a bracketed multi-exposure panorama of your location, and HDReye will stitch and generate a 32-bit (.EXR format) HDRi of your location. HDReye is an essential app for combining 3D animation realistically with footage or capturing lightmaps of any location. What used to require an expensive 360° camera or chrome ball light probe, now can be done conveniently on your phone with HDReye. Whether you are an independent 3D artist, VFX studio, AR developer, NFT artist, content creator, or just a hobbyist - HDReye is here to make your workflow simpler and renders more realistic. HDReye is your image-based lighting solution. Compatible with all 3D packages and render engines including Cinema 4D, Blender, Houdini, Maya, 3D Studio Max, Adobe After Effects, Element 3D, OTOY Octane Render, Redshift, V-ray, Arnold, Unreal Engine, Unity, Spark AR, and more. HDReye users also have access to the largest crowdsourced collection of HDRi images in the world. HDReye also works well for capturing 360° panoramas similar to the Google Street View app. Terms of Use: http://hdreye.app/terms/ Privacy Policy: http://hdreye.app/privacy/

Screenshots

THETA+4 screens
HDReye4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: THETA+ at none against HDReye's 4. HDReye's advantage is rating (4.5 vs 4.1) and review sentiment (29% vs 20%). On price, ratings volume, update cadence and ads there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. HDReye sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $6.99 per month. THETA+ asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

HDReye holds the better App Store score, 4.5 against 4.1. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 333 and 770 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 20% of THETA+'s written reviews are positive against 29% of HDReye's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

THETA+ ships an update every 2 months, HDReye monthly. Both last shipped on September 22, 2026.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
THETA+ versus HDReye: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterTHETA+HDReye
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.1 (333 ratings)4.5 (770 ratings) — better
Positive reviews20.1% of reviews29.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings333770 — better
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsMonthly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree — betterFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS14.0 — better15.0
Further details — not scored
Size186 MB90 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperRicoh Co., Ltd.HDReye Technologies Inc.

Customer experience

THETA+

All ratings333 ratings
Positive76.9%
Neutral2.1%
Negative21.0%
Written reviews134 reviews
Positive20.1%
Neutral9.7%
Negative70.1%

HDReye

All ratings770 ratings
Positive88.3%
Neutral2.7%
Negative9.0%
Written reviews186 reviews
Positive29.0%
Neutral5.4%
Negative65.6%

User reviews

THETA+

From 333 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Easy to use
  • 💡 Interesting editing features
  • 👍 Good for 360 photos/videos
  • 🚀 Expands creativity

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Crashes frequently
  • 🐛 Fails to save edited content
  • 🐛 Compatibility issues with iOS updates
  • 🐛 Limited photo/video import options
  • 🐛 Poor video quality after editing

HDReye

From 770 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Easy to use
  • 👍 High-quality stitching
  • 💡 Convenient for VFX work
  • 🚀 Fast processing
  • 👍 Intuitive workflow

Room to improve

  • 🔒 Paywall to preview/download
  • 🐛 Inconsistent stitching quality
  • 💰 Expensive subscription model
  • 🐛 Crashes and server issues
  • 🔒 No offline processing

Bugs and requests

THETA+

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Fails to save videos after editing
  • Crashes when trying to export
  • Doesn't recognize photos/videos in library
  • Distorts aspect ratio of exported content

Requested features

4 requests
  • Add 60fps export option
  • Allow audio track addition to exports
  • Improve transition smoothness between keyframes
  • Restore removed editing features

HDReye

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Account deletion issues
  • Stuck on processing/uploading
  • Disappearing credits

Requested features

4 requests
  • Free trial or preview option
  • Ability to stitch locally on device
  • One-time purchase option
  • Improved stitching algorithm

In-app purchases

None

THETA+

No in-app purchases

4 purchases

HDReye

Subscriptions3
  • HDReye Pro$6.991 Month
  • HDReye Pro3 Days trial$6.991 Month
  • HDReye Pro$39.991 Year
One-time1
  • Asset unlock$2.99

Questions

Is THETA+ free?
THETA+ is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is HDReye free?
HDReye is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, THETA+ or HDReye?
HDReye is rated higher. THETA+ averages 4.1 out of 5 from 333 ratings, while HDReye averages 4.5 from 770 ratings.
Do THETA+ or HDReye have ads?
Neither THETA+ nor HDReye shows ads.
Which is updated more often, THETA+ or HDReye?
THETA+ ships an update every 2 months, and HDReye monthly. Most recently, THETA+ was updated on September 22, 2026 and HDReye on September 22, 2026.

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