Comparison

Map Discovery vs Scanner3D

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

Head to head
About

Map Discovery

Features
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Users are able to load GIS mapping data: mbtiles, gpkg, Shapefiles (zipped), KML, GPX, CSV, GeoJSON As well as connect to basemaps, OGC WMS, XYZ Tile servers (with support for more services coming soon) Open Street Map Vector tiles with different stylesheets basemap and many raster tile basemaps are available from multiple providers. The app has a data catalog JSON format feature that allows for configuring online mapping services (ESRI MapServer, ESRI ImageServer, ESRI FeatureServer, OGC WMS, OGC WMTS Tiles,XYZ/TMS Tiles,OGC WFS) The app supports data creation and editing digitizing/drawing vector features. Can create new geojson data with any properties you want defined and view attribute/grid and perform searching OGC WFS-T Transactional data creation and Editing is available for users that have GeoServer, QGIS Server, MapServer and others. Analysis tools like measure distance and area, map swipe, getting elevation, viewing attribute tables Search open street map places and geographies via OSM Nominatim Search. It also does address geocoding. The app is very customizable to your needs the units of measure can be changes as well as Display of Map Coordinates ( Latitude and Longitude, MGRS, GARS) and Scale bar The app is also able to connect to our other app Tile Server for iOS and access data being served by that app.

About

Scanner3D

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Scanner3D captures 3D point clouds using your iPhone's LiDAR sensor. Capture depth, RGB, camera pose, and confidence maps, then export scans as zip files for use in robotics, 3D printing, and visualization. Features: - Real-time depth heatmap preview at 60fps - Capture depth (256x192), RGB (1920x1440), intrinsics, and camera pose - Save and manage multiple scan sessions in the Library - Export scans as zip files via the Files app - ArUco marker generation for camera-to-robot calibration Requires iPhone 12 Pro or newer with LiDAR sensor.

Screenshots

Map Discovery4 screens
Scanner3D3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: Scanner3D at every 2 weeks against Map Discovery's every 6 weeks. Map Discovery's advantage is device support (3 vs 1) and iOS requirement (12.0 vs 17.5). On price, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.

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

CostPrice ยท In-app purchases ยท Ads ยท Monetization

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Map Discovery ships an update every 6 weeks, Scanner3D every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 27, 2026 and October 26, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences ยท 3 level
Map Discovery versus Scanner3D: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterMap DiscoveryScanner3D
PriceFreeFree
Update frequencyEvery 6 weeksEvery 2 weeks โ€” better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod โ€” betteriPhone
Requires iOS12.0 โ€” better17.5
Further details โ€” not scored
Size102 MB2 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperTech Maven GeoSpatial LLCDanqing Zhang

In-app purchases

None

Map Discovery

No in-app purchases

None

Scanner3D

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Map Discovery free?
Map Discovery is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Scanner3D free?
Scanner3D is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do Map Discovery or Scanner3D have ads?
Neither Map Discovery nor Scanner3D shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Map Discovery or Scanner3D?
Map Discovery ships an update every 6 weeks, and Scanner3D every 2 weeks. Most recently, Map Discovery was updated on October 27, 2026 and Scanner3D on October 26, 2026.

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