Matterport Pro 3 vs. Pro 2 – The Pros & Cons

The wait is finally over because Matterport has released their new hardware Matterport Pro 3. The 3D camera we’ve all been waiting for! We believe that every professional providing real estate virtual tours like us are excited to try it out and see what improvements Matterport made with a new release.

The Matterport Pro 3 and the Matterport Pro 2 both use the same powerful 3D imaging technology to capture spaces in vivid detail. In this blog, we’ll compare the two cameras side-by-side so you can make an informed decision and know their fundamental differences. 

Learn the differences, discover the pros and cons of Matterport Pro 3 and Matterport Pro 2, and explore new powerful features. 

Matterport Pro 3 Pros & Features

Finally, we get a camera that scans faster than Matterport Pro 2. Besides taking less than 20 seconds per scan, what other powerful features does Matterport Pro 3 have?

• Matterport Pro 3 camera has better accuracy and more detail, and digital twins are an even better representation of physical space. 
• At Scene 3D, we talked about the Matterport Pro 3 features we’d love to see. One of them was definitely the maximum scan range. We’re thrilled to be able to scan bigger spaces up to 100 meters away with the newly released Matterport Pro 3 camera!
• Unmatched quality both indoors and outdoors. Finally, Matterport hardware overcame the biggest obstacle. We can now scan both indoors and outdoors with Matterport Pro 3 camera. With Matterport Pro 2, we were limited in the quality of outdoor scans. Now that the Pro 3 is out, we can easily create outdoor scans with greater quality. 
• With a 20MP sensor and 12-element lens, Matterport Pro 3 produces excellent quality photos in dim light, direct sunlight, and everything in between.

Creating a digital twin of physical space helps generate more bookings, sales, and rentals. It improves website click-through rates, brings more traffic, and offers visitors an immersive experience that makes them spend more time on your website. 

Digital twins also help you get more accurate measurements and estimates for your space, whether for renovation, cleaning, repairs, or space planning. 

With Matterport Pro 3, creating impressive digital twins should be much easier, especially for long-time Matterport customers like us. But not everything is sunshine and rainbows because Matterport Pro 3 also takes a few steps back compared to Matterport Pro 2. 

Matterport Pro 3 Cons

Nothing is perfect, right? The newly released Matterport Pro 3 has some cons, despite the powerful features and benefits we’ve described above.

• Compared to Matterport Pro 2, the newly released Pro 3 has a less robust design. If dropped, it could easily get damaged. 
• The weight distribution is a little bit of. It looks like the Matterport Pro 3 could easily fall over if placed on stairs or unsteady ground. 
• Since the Pro3 scans from both sides, it’s hard for the operator to hide from the camera. Matterport Pro 3 is at the front, which isn’t much of a problem when scanning indoors. But when it comes to scanning outdoors, it’s harder for operators to ensure they won’t end up in a reflection. As virtual tour service providers, this makes our job harder. 
• Battery life is not as good as expected since a two-hour job drained the battery by 54%. 
• Matterport Pro 3 has removable batteries, which is good. But whether they’d be affordable and a wise investment is a question (to get an idea of the cost of a pro 3 battery click here) 
• Pro 2 has higher resolution photos, 7680 x 4320, compared to Matterport Pro 3, which produces photos of only 6068 x 3413. We don’t know the logic behind the lower quality, and we’re certainly not happy about it. 

So, What About The Price?

Matterport Pro 3 costs £4,899, while the price of Pro 2 is considerably less – £2,200. Whether the price difference is justified, you have to decide for yourself. Hopefully, this blog post will help you. 

What do you get when you buy Matterport Pro 3 for £4,899

• 1 Pro3 Camera in carry case
• 1 Tripod Mount
• 1 Battery
• 1 Charging Kit
• 1 Year Warranty

As seasoned virtual tour professionals, we can tell you that if you’d use Matterport 3D camera for scanning the interior of a space, Matterport Pro 2 is just enough.

Considering that Matterport Pro 3 is a new release, it’s natural the price is higher. It will probably drop at some point. If you need features: such as outdoor scanning of bigger spaces, then Pro 3 is definitely an excellent investment. 

Matterport Pro 3 is also incompatible with Classic plans, making it considerably more expensive to use. It seems like MP’s longtime, loyal customers are punished with highly high monthly fees. We feel it’s a sneaky move to make longtime customers pay more and more for the same. Maybe MP will benefit in the short term, but we don’t think this approach will benefit much in the long run.  

Matterport Pro 3 vs. Pro 2 Final Thoughts

Overall, Matterport Pro 3 has some powerful features we’ve all been waiting for. The maximum scan range for Pro 2 is only 4,5 meters, and Matterport made significant improvements on Pro 3 because the maximum scan range is 100 meters.

The current battery life on a Matterport Pro2 is around 8 – 10 hours, while Matterport Pro 3 is considerably less. Removable batteries make up for that, but they are not exactly cheap. 

It’s still early to jump to conclusions because everyone has their own preferences. At Scene3D, we’re excited to see the powerful new ways to use Matterport Pro 3 and see what it can do out in the field. 

Exploring possibilities and new features Matterport Pro 3 has to offer will take some time, but it will also be an exciting journey for us. However, we also wish that Matterport leadership paid more attention to their loyal and longtime customers and tried not to make our daily job both more challenging and more expensive.