What is Matterport?

At Scene3D we pride ourselves on being experts in all things ‘virtual tour’. So questions we’re often asked are: ‘What is Matterport?’, And more importantly: ‘How can it help my business?’.

Well, In this blog, we will be discussing exactly what (and who) Matterport is. We’ll also review the range of benefits that the Matterport platform offers. We’ll also discuss how you can use Matterport to develop your business or sell your property. Finally, we’ll compare how Matterport stacks up to other virtual tour and 3D scanning methodologies.

Who are Matterport?

First established in 2011 as a tech start-up. Matterport are an American company based out of Silicon Valley specialising in 3D spacial data capture. Shortly after its creation, Matterport grew in size due to multiple investments and collaborations with big name companies like Google. Matterport remained ahead of the competition partly due to their in house 3D cameras. The Matterport cameras can scan on average ’20 seconds faster than any other 3D camera, and for an 18th of the average cost’. Combine that with the high quality virtual tours produced by the Matterport software platform and you’ve got a winning combination.

13 years later, Matterport are still leading the industry with their range of 3D cameras and cloud software solutions. In 2024, Matterport were aquired by a company called CoStar. This acquisition hopes to boost thier digital services in the Real Estate market.

What are Matterport virtual tours?

Matterport’s equipment and software are used to 3D scan a physical space, and convert this data into a virtual tour (sometimes also referred to as a digital twin). A digital twin is essentially a digital copy of a physical space, containing data such as visuals, measurements, and more. To learn more about digital twins, you can read our full breakdown here.

Matterport produce a range of 3D cameras that scan a space to obtain measurments and capture stunning panoramic images. At Scene3D, we use Matterport’s 3D cameras to scan a space. We then complete the post production using Matterport’s software tool kit.

We then combine this with some virtual tour overlay software, This software gives our team more options to ensure every virtual tour is completely bespoke.

The end result is a stunning, engaging and effective virtual tour:

Matterport also recently developed their own AI tool: Cortex. The Cortex AI can uses machine learning to turn a 2D image into a fully explorable 3D model.

This functionality allows 3D virtual tours to be created by uploading images taken from a 360 camera or even a smartphone. However, it’s important to bare in mind that virtual tours created this was do have varying degrees of quality when compared to virtual tours created using Matterport’s propriety cameras.

What are the benefits of using Matterport?

In our professional opinion, there is nothing quite like Matterport for displaying a business or property online.

Matterport offers a simple and effective way of turning a physical space into a fully explorable and user friendly virtual tour that’s suitable for a variety of uses. This kind of interactive content is proven to be up to 10x more engaging when compared to a website using traditional images or video. By giving a visitor the freedom to explore a space remotely, a virtual tour provides a true understanding of the layout and flow of a space. Users can explore rooms at their own pace while familiarising themselves with a building’s unique characteristics.

Other Matterport features also open up powerful ways to engage with your visitors. Mattertags keep a viewer engaged with interactive hot spots throughout the virtual tour. Great for to bringing life to a virtual tour, Mattertags can contain text, images, audio or video. Mattertags can also be applied in a variety of ways. For example, a real estate agent can use Mattertags to highlight a home’s key features to prospcetive buyers. Whereas a school can use Mattertags as a way to help students navigate around the campus.

These are just a couple of the benefits that make using Matterport a no-brainer for virtual tours. If you’d like to learn more about some of Matterport’s most powerful features, check out our virtual tour best practices blog here. In summary, If you’re looking for a highly detailed view of your entire building, with stunning imagery, accurate measurements and a high level of interactivity, then a Matterport virtual tour is what you need.

Matterport Cameras

Matterport offer a range of 3D cameras and related equipment. We have compiled a list of the most relevant products from Matterport:

The Pro 1

The first 3D camera ever produced by Matterport, the Pro 1 changed the industry when it was released back in 2014. Featuring never before seen 3D scanning technology and 2K resolution image capture, the Pro 1 was quickly adopted as the industry standard for 3D scanning. In recent years, Matterport have stopped support and repairs for the Pro 1 camera, and are focusing more on their newer products. Because of this, we would advise to lean more toward the newer models.

The Pro 2

The Pro 2 released back in 2017, and proved to be a huge upgrade from the Pro 1. Featuring improved image quality, reduced scan time, and more accurate measurements. It was immediately clear that the Pro 2 greatly improved on some of the Pro 1’s weaknesses. Support from Matterport for the Pro 2 is still ongoing, and Matterport continue to produce accessories for the Pro 2. With all this in mind, this 3D camera a very viable choice for anyone.

The Pro 3

Finally, we will take a look at the latest of the 3D cameras produced by Matterport. The Pro 3 was released in August of 2022 and improves on the already impressive specifications of the Pro 2. Drastically reduced scan times, further improved image detail, removable batteries, and high level accuracy up to 100m are some of the best features of the Pro3.

If you would like to learn more about the Pro3 vs the Pro2, you can read our article here

Matterport Software

As well as using cameras to capture of the physical space, a large part of the virtual tour process lies in the post production,

Matterport offer access to their online workshop tools as part of the subscription plans. The Matterport workshop is where users can add clickable Mattertags, customise the functions of your virtual tour, take more images from the virtual tour, and more. The Matterport workshop is also a web based application, so no downloading and installing is required.

How can I use Matterport to develop my business?

Through the use of Matterport’s hardware and software, there are several ways you can develop your business. Lets take a look at each relevant sector and how Matterport can benefit each one.

If you would prefer to watch a video, we have recently updated our YouTube channel with videos on each sector. You can view our channel here.

Matterport for residential and commercial real estate

Maybe the most prominent sector to make use of Matterport is the real estate industry.

Property listings that incorporate a virtual tour are proven to stand out from the competition. With a virtual tour potential customers can freely explore the property, use interactive features to learn about the space, and make an informed decision before inquiring. This filters out unsuitible applicants, reduces the need for disruptive in-person visits and make the whole process easier for everyone involved. Residential property listings with a virtual tour can see up to a 95% increase and enquiries. You can learn more about the benefits of Matterport Virtual Tours for residential properties here.

The same is true for commercial property listings that utilise Matterport. By freeing up potential tenants to explore a 24/7 open view of a building, organisations are better equiped to make strategic decisions about a property. While indviduals or smaller businesses can also learn key info such as how to book a meeting room, or how to find the building on Google maps. Commercial properties oftern see up to 10x more time spent on their listings when using virtual tours. You can learn more about commercial property Virtual Tours here.

Matterport for bars and restaurants

When searching for the perfect venue for a birthday celebration or a cute restaurant for date night, most people’s first step is to reach for their smart phone and search online. By displaying your bar or restaurant with a virtual tour, customers can get a feel for your businesses layout, experience the decor, learn about the menus, check the location and more. With a Matterport virtual tour, you can easily and clearly display exactly what a potential customer is looking for. A virtual tour will allow your customers to feel a connection with the venue, before they have set foot in the door. Overall, this will directly impact the amount of bookings you take, and increase your online presence.

Matterport for museums and galleries

With a Matterport Virtual Tour, musesums and galleries can open their exhibitions to visitors who may not be able to physically visit in-person. This can have great benefits for accessibility, allowing those who are not able-bodied to still enjoy and learn about an exhibition. Matterport’s features like Mattertags create opportunities to educate and inform your users on specific artworks or areas digital exhibition. A matterport virtual tour can also improve the number of people who physically visit the museum or gallery through improved web presence. As mentioned above, websites with a Matterport virtual tour can see a 10x increase in the time a user spends on the page. Time on page is a major factor in how a website ranks on google.

Matterport for retail

More people are shopping online than ever before. Imagine if you could transport your physical store to where potential customers are already browsing. Matterport’s virtual tours benefit traditonal retail business by bringing their business online. Interactive features such as data tags educate customers on product range while providing the option to purchase directly through the virtual tour. As Matterport’s virtual tours are hosted online, you are creating an entirely online platform for your physical store. Which in turn, will increase sales, build your online presence, and improve your websites SEO. You can learn more about 3D virtual tours in the retail industry here.

Matterport for construction

Beyond marketing, virtual tours from Matterport can be used for referencing, planning and construction. A digital twin of your project means you can collaborate remotely with colleagues, suppliers and investors, regardless of where in the world they’re physically located. Using high quality visuals and accurate measurements, viewers can explore the space, check progress against plan and send to suppliers for costings. Save time, money and resources a Matterport digital twin of your project.

Matterport for hotels and wedding venues

When searching for a place to stay or a venue for an important event, the first thing most people do is search online. With a Matterport virtual tour, website visitors have a interactive, engaging and comprehensive view of your business. Customers can browse through your different room types, learn about function rooms and ammenties, view the different areas of the hotel and familiarise themselves with the layout. Using the interactive features such as Mattertags, customers can view menus, direct links to book, and display video and images to improve the experience. Providing your potential customers with a Virtual Tour from Matterport will overall improve your website conversion rate and increase bookings.

Matterport for education and training

Schools and universities using a Matterport Virtual Tour to display their campus, classrooms and facilities see a dramatic increase in applications. Students can familiarise themselves with the layout and staff, learn what courses are on offer, and how to get around on the campus all from the comfort of home. Using Matterport’s multi-media features, your virtual tour can educate and inform potential students on key info such as class timetables, extra curricular activities and teacher bios.

Matterport’s Virtual Tours can also be used for training and educating your staff through automated learning. By offering a simulation training experience to your staff, you will save time, money and resources. All while ensuring that your staff can repeat their training experience and complete tasks confidently.

How does Matterport compare to its competitors?

There are a few competitors out there that are supplying a similar level of hardware and software that Matterport offer. While we personally recommend Matterport, there are still some great options out there. We have compiled a list below of 3 examples, and how they compare to Matterport:

Zillow3D

Zillow3D are a company who offer their users the ability to create virtual tours through a mobile app. Users can turn panoramic images into viewpoints for virtual tours of properties, all on a mobile phone.

EyeSpy360

EyeSpy360 offer a variety of features such as an interactive virtual tour, floor plans, and a AI generated 3D model of the scanned property. Users can turn panoramic images or 360 images into a virtual tour, using their mobile app.

Metareal

Metareal offer full virtual tour services where users can simply send their panoramic images to Metareal for them to process into a full virtual tour. Users can either capture the images themselves, or hire Metareal out to capture the space for them. Metareal offer a variety of subscription based packages to suit different needs.

What is Matterport? – conclusion

We hope this article has been a useful over view of who Matterport is, what their virtual tours are, who Matterport virtual tours can benefit and how Matterport compairs to other solutions on the markert.

While not perfect, Matterport is the industry standard for a reason. Matterport produce some of the most relaible and cutting edge technology currently on the market, as well as having a global framework able to support users. Matterport continue to update their cloud software for maximum usability, and provide a great quality level of customer service for repairs or support.

If you would like to improve your online presence, drive sales, and create an interactive and comprehensive digital twin of your business or property, please get in touch.

Or if you want to learn more about 3D Virtual Tours, visit our learning hub.

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