Comparison

Spherualizer vs HDReye

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

Head to head
About

Spherualizer

Edit and share immersive 360° photos and videos. This app allows you to view, capture, and reframe spherical media from various cameras and devices. Create dynamic stories and animations with advanced editing tools.

Highlights
  • 360° spherical viewer with gyro and touch controls
  • Capture snapshots and full-frame video clips
  • Record video in infinite or timed modes
  • Gyro stabiliser for smooth video recording
  • Organise media into albums
  • Advanced spherical editor for framing and animations
  • Cross-device compatibility (iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple TV)
Features
Read full description

Transform any 360° photo or video into a story you can play, edit, and share. Spherualizer natively opens 2 : 1 equirectangular files from any 360 camera—including GoPro, Insta360, DJI, Ricoh Theta, and beyond—and panoramas stitched from multiple DSLR shots or even iPhone panos for a creative twist. Create on iPhone, iPad, or Mac, and enjoy your full 360 library on Apple TV. Spherualizer is the viewer‑editor that makes spherical moments shine on every screen. 360 SPHERICAL VIEWER - Gyroscope and touch — tilt, rotate, or swipe to look around any spherical photo or video - Gamepad support — move smoothly with PlayStation or Xbox controllers, or use the on‑screen joystick - Full‑screen — view your 360 photos and videos in full‑screen INFO SHEET - View details such as resolution, frame rate, codec, and more - Photos also show EXIF data CAPTURE AND REFRAME - Quick snapshots — tap the shutter button to capture a frame from any angle - Full‑frame save — pause a 360 video and archive the complete spherical frame in the Gallery VIDEO RECORDING TOOLS - Press and hold the shutter button to enter recording mode from the spherical viewer - Pick your favourite mode: - Infinite — record for as long as you like; the video loops, so you can film the same moment from different angles in one take - Timed — choose 5, 10, 15, 30, 45, or 60 seconds - You can also select a segment of the video to record - Gyro stabiliser — three levels to balance smoothness and responsiveness while you move ORGANISE YOUR LIBRARY - Photos live in the Gallery and can be organised into albums - Videos stay on a separate tab SMART ICLOUD SYNC - Optimise storage by keeping originals only in iCloud, or download photos at full resolution and keep them on‑device at all times - Videos are always on‑device and are never synced — saving your iCloud space SIMPLE IMPORT - Open media without adding it to the Library - Import to the Library from the Photos or Files apps, even from a NAS or external drives - Drag and drop files into the Library to import, or drop a file into the spherical viewer to open it SPHERUALIZE ACTION - Thanks to the Spherualize action in the Activity View — often called the share sheet — you can preview 360 media from apps like Photos and Files REVIEW AND SHARE YOUR CREATIONS - Every snapshot, clip, or animation opens in a preview screen where you can share it or saved it to Photos ADVANCED SPHERICAL EDITOR - Start editing from the spherical viewer or the last saved draft - Precision sliders — rotate, zoom, move, and tilt for perfect framing, Tiny Planet, rabbit‑hole, or any perspective - One‑tap animations — transform 360 photos into video animations ACROSS YOUR APPLE DEVICES - Native everywhere — optimised for iPhone, iPad (compatible with Split View), Mac (Apple Silicon), and Apple TV - Big‑screen immersion — play photos and videos on Apple TV by sending them from the iPhone app LIVE IN VR - Ready for Meta Quest — a free companion app syncs your Spherualizer Gallery photos with Quest for head‑tracked viewing - Search for "Spherualizer" in the Meta Store TRANSFORM YOUR 360 MOMENTS. Download Spherualizer today and start telling 360‑degree stories.

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

Spherualizer4 screens
HDReye4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: HDReye at Free against Spherualizer's $9.99. HDReye also leads on ratings volume (771 vs 100). Spherualizer's advantage is review sentiment (69% vs 29%) and in-app purchases (none vs 4). On update cadence, ads, device support and iOS requirement 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

HDReye is free to download; Spherualizer costs $9.99 up front. HDReye sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $6.99 per month. Spherualizer asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Spherualizer holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 4.5. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: HDReye has 771 ratings behind it against 100, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 69% of Spherualizer's written reviews are positive against 29% of HDReye's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly monthly. Both last shipped on October 14, 2026.

Scorecard6 real differences · 4 level
Spherualizer versus HDReye: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSpherualizerHDReye
Price$9.99Free — better
Rating4.7 (100 ratings) — better4.5 (771 ratings)
Positive reviews68.9% of reviews — better28.6% of reviews
Number of ratings100771 — better
Update frequencyMonthlyMonthly
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree — betterFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple TV — betteriPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.615.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size10 MB90 MB
Age rating12+4+
DeveloperGiovanni MurruHDReye Technologies Inc.

Customer experience

Spherualizer

All ratings100 ratings
Positive92.0%
Neutral1.0%
Negative7.0%
Written reviews45 reviews
Positive68.9%
Neutral4.4%
Negative26.7%

HDReye

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

Bugs and requests

Spherualizer

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

None

Spherualizer

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 Spherualizer free?
Spherualizer costs $9.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is HDReye free?
HDReye is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Spherualizer or HDReye?
Spherualizer is rated higher. Spherualizer averages 4.7 out of 5 from 100 ratings, while HDReye averages 4.5 from 771 ratings.
Do Spherualizer or HDReye have ads?
Neither Spherualizer nor HDReye shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Spherualizer or HDReye?
Spherualizer ships an update monthly, and HDReye monthly. Most recently, Spherualizer was updated on October 14, 2026 and HDReye on October 14, 2026.

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