How to scan your room for a free estimate

AutoCASI is a construction-estimating tech brand serving Ontario, Canada. Homeowners scan a room with their phone and email the scan to estimate@autocasi.com to get a detailed estimate.

This guide covers iPhone (Scaniverse by Niantic Spatial) and Android (magicplan Starter, with optional Scaniverse). Follow the section for your phone. Then use the email checklist at the end.

iPhone: Scaniverse (by Niantic Spatial)

Scaniverse turns a room into a 3D model on your iPhone. For AutoCASI estimates, use the Classic experience (on-device scanning and export). That is the personal scanner still included in the app.

Requirements

You also need enough free storage, a charged battery, and good indoor lighting.

Install

1. Open the App Store on your iPhone.
2. Search for Scaniverse.
3. Install Scaniverse - 3D Scanner by Niantic Spatial, Inc.
4. Open the app and allow camera access when prompted (needed to scan).
5. Stay in the Classic experience for a single-room scan you will export and email. (The newer team / cloud “New Scaniverse” workflow is optional and not required for AutoCASI.)

How to scan a room well

Official Niantic Spatial guidance for a single room is an overview scan: walk the perimeter and capture ceiling, floor, and corners, then add detail where it matters.

Before you start

• Turn on lights and open blinds. Even, bright light works best. Avoid harsh glare on mirrors and glass when you can.
• Clear clutter from floors and corners if it blocks walls, doors, or fixtures.
• Charge the phone (or keep a charger handy). Close apps you do not need.
• Plan to cover walls, floor, ceiling, corners, windows, doors, and fixed fixtures (cabinets, vanities, radiators, built-ins).

Capture (Classic)

1. In Scaniverse Classic, start a new scan.
2. Choose Mesh (not only a splat) when you want a model you can export in common 3D formats for estimating. Official support documents access mesh capture via New Scan > Mesh.
3. Start recording with the on-screen record control (typically the red control at the bottom).
4. Move slowly and continuously. Sudden stops or jerky motion can blur frames or break tracking.
5. For a single room, use an overview pattern:
   1. Stand near the perimeter and walk along it with the camera pointed toward the interior.
   2. Pass 1: Hold the phone level to capture walls and mid-height features (doors, windows, furniture edges).
   3. Pass 2: Tilt upward for the ceiling.
   4. Pass 3: Tilt downward for the floor.
6. Keep earlier parts of the room in view as you move so the app can overlap frames.
7. Slow down at corners, around windows and doors, and at fixed fixtures. Capture them from more than one angle.
8. If the live mesh on screen looks patchy or unstable, slow down, point back at an area you already scanned, and add overlap.
9. Stop recording when coverage looks complete. Process or save when the app offers that step.
10. Review the model. If walls, ceiling, or a doorway look incomplete, scan again or add a short detail pass of that area.

How long it takes

• A careful single-room overview is often a few minutes of walking, not a full day project.
• Official Scaniverse capture guidance: each scan can last up to about five minutes and cover a large area; quality depends on overlap and coverage, not on filling the entire time limit.
• For splat-style captures, Scaniverse has also warned that very long recordings (over about 180 seconds) can risk processing failure. Prefer solid coverage over marathon recordings.

Tips that improve estimate quality

• Prefer mesh export when AutoCASI needs geometry you can share as a file.
• Minimize people walking through the frame, swinging doors, and fans.
• Blank white walls, mirrors, and large glass areas are harder; spend extra time on corners and trim so the model still locks to the room shape.

Export or share the scan, then email it

After the scan is processed and open in the viewer:

1. Open the Share options for that scan.
2. Choose Export Model when you want a file (meshes can export in formats such as GLB, OBJ, FBX, USDZ, and STL; point clouds include PLY and LAS, per Scaniverse support materials).
3. For a practical email attachment, prefer GLB when available: Share → Export Model → GLB, then Save to Files (or share directly).
4. You can also use the share sheet to send via Mail, Gmail, or another email app (Share → Send in Message style sharing is documented for messaging and email apps).
5. Email the exported file (or a private share link if that is all you can send) to estimate@autocasi.com.

If the file is too large for email, save it to Files / iCloud Drive / Google Drive and put a share link in the email, or send the scan in a second message after the photos and details.

Android: magicplan Starter (+ optional Scaniverse)

There is no free Android app that builds an automatic floor plan the way iPhone LiDAR Auto-Scan does. For AutoCASI on Android, use this combo:

1. magicplan (Starter plan): required for a dimensioned floor plan PDF
2. Scaniverse for Android: optional visual 3D model / share link
3. Tape measurements of the longest walls and the ceiling height
4. Photos (see the email checklist)

1) magicplan Starter (floor plan PDF)

Install and set up

1. Install magicplan from Google Play.
2. Create a free account (Starter Plan enrolls automatically).
3. On the home screen, tap + New Project.
4. Enter project name, description, and address (use your property address or city).
5. Under Floor Plans, tap + to add a floor level and choose the floor type.

Add a room (Android methods)

From the floor screen: tap + Insert → Room, then pick one of these official Android options:

After the outline exists:

• Edit walls and add corners as needed.
• Insert doors, windows, and major fixtures from the object library when you can.
• Add photos and notes on the plan for damage, finishes, or problem areas.

Export a PDF and email it

1. Open the floor plan in the project.
2. Tap Export... in the sidebar, or the blue export control in the upper right.
3. Generate a PDF (floor plan / sketch export). Customize what is included if the app offers options.
4. Share or save the PDF, then email it to estimate@autocasi.com (or attach it from Files after saving).

2) Scaniverse for Android (optional 3D view)

Use Scaniverse only as a visual helper after the magicplan PDF. Scan slowly with good light, cover walls / floor / ceiling / corners, then share a link or exported model in the same email thread if the file size allows.

3) Tape measurements (Android must-have)

Because Android magicplan is not LiDAR Auto-Scan, include:

• Length of the longest walls in each room scanned
• Ceiling height (measure in a few places if the ceiling changes)
• Any openings (door / window widths) that matter for the work

Write the numbers in the email body or on a photo of a notepad next to the wall.

What to include in your email

Send to estimate@autocasi.com. Subject idea: Estimate request - [city or street] - [room type].

Checklist:

• Address or city (street address preferred; city is the minimum)
• Rooms scanned (for example: kitchen, main bath, basement rec room)
• What you want done (reno scope: flooring, kitchen, bath, painting, etc.)
• Timeline (when you hope to start or finish)
• Budget if you know it (range is fine)
• 3 to 5 normal photos of the same spaces (corners, overall views, problem areas)
• iPhone: Scaniverse mesh export (GLB preferred) or private share link
• Android: magicplan PDF + tape measurements (longest walls + ceiling height) + optional Scaniverse link

Privacy tip: only send what you are comfortable sharing. You do not need to post scans publicly on Scaniverse’s map for an AutoCASI estimate.

Sources (checked October 13, 2026)

Scaniverse / Niantic Spatial

• Scaniverse on the App Store: iOS 16.6+, A12+, device list, Classic still available, export formats mentioned in listing copy
• Scaniverse Quickstart (Niantic Spatial): iPhone 13+ recommended for New experience; Pro + LiDAR higher quality; move slowly; up to five minutes per scan
• Scan techniques for Scaniverse: single-room overview (perimeter; level / up / down passes); overlap; lighting notes; LiDAR depth when present
• Niantic Spatial Scaniverse FAQ: iOS recommended iPhone 13+; LiDAR best results; Android supported with hardware variance
• Scaniverse support (device / LiDAR / Mesh / formats) and mirrored FAQ content: LiDAR not required; New Scan > Mesh; mesh export formats including GLB
• Scaniverse release notes: Share > Export Model; Share > Send in Message (email / messaging apps)
• Scaniverse on Google Play
• Penn State Media Commons Scaniverse tutorials (secondary UI walkthrough): Share → Export Model → GLB → Save to Files

magicplan

• magicplan on Google Play
• Using magicplan’s Starter Plan: two free projects; export sketches / reports / estimates
• Supported devices: Android ARCore; no Auto-Scan / scan features on Android
• Creating floor plans on Android: Draw Room, Add Square Room, Import & Draw
• Create a room with Draw Room: + Insert → Room → Draw Room; tap corners; adjust dimensions
• How to create your first floor plan: + New Project; Android has no room scanning
• Exporting and sharing in the app: Export... / blue export control

Could not fully verify on-device

• Exact Classic Scaniverse button labels can change by app version. Steps above use documented names (New Scan, Mesh, Share, Export Model, GLB, Save to Files) and otherwise describe the control without guessing.
• Live App Store / Play screenshots of every submenu were not re-captured inside the apps on a physical device for this draft.
• magicplan PDF export file-type labels inside the Export tab can vary by plan and version; use the floor-plan / sketch PDF option shown in your Export screen.