Map Discovery vs Scanner3D
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side โ with what reviewers say about each.
Map Discovery
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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.
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
Verdict
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
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
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.
| Parameter | Map Discovery | Scanner3D |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Update frequency | Every 6 weeks | Every 2 weeks โ better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod โ better | iPhone |
| Requires iOS | 12.0 โ better | 17.5 |
| Further details โ not scored | ||
| Size | 102 MB | 2 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Tech Maven GeoSpatial LLC | Danqing Zhang |
In-app purchases
Map Discovery
No in-app purchases
Scanner3D
No in-app purchases









