Comparison

Byplay Camera vs HDReye

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

Head to head
About

Byplay Camera

Easily create professional VFX shots with AR-powered video tracking. Get complete 3D scene data for Blender, C4D, or Houdini in seconds. Automates complex tasks for faster compositing and seamless integration into your projects.

Highlights
  • AR camera tracking
  • 3D scene data generation
  • Houdini, Blender, C4D integration
  • Environment EXR export
  • Custom NULL points
  • Automated compositing tools
Read full description

Shoot video in AR and get complete Houdini, Blender or C4D scene in 60 seconds. Camera tracking, coloured point cloud, environment EXR, custom NULL points - everything to make your VFX shots as quickly and easily as never before No manual work, no sending files around Lock white balance and auto focus for easiest compositing Use our plugins or just take provided FBX files HOW IT WORKS: 1. You shoot a video in the app 2. AR records camera movement and all possible scene data, including EXR and point cloud 3. Video is uploaded to our cloud, where it is stored on secure servers and is never shared with anybody. We preprocess mp4 file to make it easier to use and remove shaking 4. You install Byplay desktop and choose which plugins you want - for Blender, C4D or Houdini 5. You select the video and click "download" to sync it to your computer. Byplay desktop splits it to frames and makes available for plugins 6. You open a VFX package of you choice and load the ready to use scene with one button 7. Done! MEMBERSHIP TRIAL AND SUBSCRIPTION TERMS Start your Byplay Camera membership with a free 7-day trial. Once the trial is over, you’ll be charged subscription fee. Your membership will automatically renew unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. You can go to your Settings > iTunes Account & App Store > Apple ID > Subscriptions to manage your membership and turn auto-renew off. Your iTunes Account will be charged when the purchase is confirmed. Read more about our terms and conditions here — https://byplay.io/app-tos Read more about our privacy policy here — https://byplay.io/privacy

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

Byplay Camera4 screens
HDReye4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: HDReye at 4.5 against Byplay Camera's 3.7. HDReye also leads on ads (none vs shown) and ratings volume (771 vs 17). Byplay Camera's advantage is review sentiment (67% vs 29%). On price, update cadence, in-app purchases and monetization model 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. Byplay Camera sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month and HDReye sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $6.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

HDReye holds the better App Store score, 4.5 against 3.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: HDReye has 771 ratings behind it against 17, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 67% of Byplay Camera's written reviews are positive against 29% of HDReye's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly monthly. The most recent releases landed on October 7, 2026 and October 14, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
Byplay Camera versus HDReye: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterByplay CameraHDReye
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.7 (17 ratings)4.5 (771 ratings) — better
Positive reviews66.7% of reviews — better28.6% of reviews
Number of ratings17771 — better
Update frequencyMonthlyMonthly
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS15.515.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size103 MB90 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperBYPLAY LLCHDReye Technologies Inc.

Customer experience

Byplay Camera

All ratings17 ratings
Positive64.7%
Neutral0.0%
Negative35.3%
Written reviews12 reviews
Positive66.7%
Neutral0.0%
Negative33.3%

HDReye

All ratings771 ratings
Positive88.2%
Neutral2.7%
Negative9.1%
Written reviews189 reviews
Positive28.6%
Neutral5.3%
Negative66.1%

Bugs and requests

Byplay Camera

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

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

4 purchases

Byplay Camera

Subscriptions4
  • One month of unlimited videos7 Days trial$4.991 Month
  • Byplay Unlimited, monthly$9.991 Month
  • One year of unlimited videos7 Days trial$34.991 Year
Show 1 more
  • Byplay Unlimited, yearly$39.991 Year
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 Byplay Camera free?
Byplay Camera is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is HDReye free?
HDReye is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Byplay Camera or HDReye?
HDReye is rated higher. Byplay Camera averages 3.7 out of 5 from 17 ratings, while HDReye averages 4.5 from 771 ratings.
Do Byplay Camera or HDReye have ads?
Byplay Camera shows ads; HDReye does not.
Which is updated more often, Byplay Camera or HDReye?
Byplay Camera ships an update monthly, and HDReye monthly. Most recently, Byplay Camera was updated on October 7, 2026 and HDReye on October 14, 2026.

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