Cake Scan Showdown

RealityScan

#1 geometry

AR opens on a phone

Triangles: 156,450
Texture: 8K (free)
Format: GLB

Polycam

#2 overall

AR opens on a phone

Triangles: 57,432
Texture: 4K × 4 maps
Format: glTF

KIRI Engine

#3 overall

AR opens on a phone

Triangles: 19,785
Texture: 8K
Format: OBJ→GLB

Quality comparison

The mesh and texture figures were measured from the exported files. The ratings for ease of capture come from how the scanning sessions went. Shaded cells mark the best result in each row.

Criterion	RealityScan	Polycam	KIRI Engine
Overall
Quality rank	1stMost detailed geometry and the highest free texture resolution	2ndClean result with full PBR textures	3rdSharp 8K texture on a light mesh; shape is smoothed
Geometry detail	Sharpest edges	Good	Smoothed, faceted
Texture detail	8K	4K	8K on a light mesh
Ease of capture	Needs careful, full coverage	Worked first time	Easy, especially on a turntable
Measured from the exported files
Triangles	156,450	57,432	19,785
Vertices	92,703	32,980	9,911
Texture in this export	8192² color + normal shown here at 4096² for phones	4096² color, normal, AO and roughness, embedded	8192² color JPG Advanced Export; shown here at 4096² for phones
File size	4.6 MB GLB + 6.4 MB JPGs	4.6 MB	1.4 MB OBJ + 3.0 MB JPG
Raw scan size	27 × 42 cm	97 × 79 cm	69 × 82 cm
Free tier & workflow
Max free texture	8K	4K	4K 8K via Advanced Export (paid)
Free export formats	GLB	glTF only OBJ, FBX and GLB are paid	GLB (4K) this file was exported as OBJ (Advanced Export)
Capture input	Photos (photogrammetry)	Photos	Photos or LiDAR
First-try success	No Every side of the object has to be covered	Yes	Yes
Best for	Final, high-detail assets	Fast, reliable scans with good textures	Turntable product shots and quick drafts

Notes

RealityScan textures. RealityScan exports the 8K color and normal maps as separate JPGs next to the GLB. They are packed into the GLB here. The viewer uses a 4096² copy, because two 8K maps need about 0.5 GB of graphics memory and that fails on many phones. The full-resolution file is realityscan_8k.glb (11 MB).

Table surface. RealityScan kept a rectangle of the table under the cake, while Polycam and KIRI cut it away. Cropping the reconstruction region tighter before export would remove it.

KIRI conversion. This is KIRI's Advanced Export: an OBJ of quads with an 8192² texture. It was converted to GLB without changing the mesh, so it can be shown in AR. The viewer uses a 4096² copy of the texture, and the full-resolution file is kiri_8k.glb (4.4 MB).

AR on a table. Android uses Scene Viewer or WebXR; iPhone uses AR Quick Look, with the USDZ file generated automatically from the GLB. Point the camera at the table until the surface is detected, then tap to place the cake. Pinch to resize it.

Scale. A phone camera without LiDAR can't measure real-world size, so each app guessed a different one. All three models start at the same 30 cm footprint.