3D Convert E57 vs PLY
Both can store point clouds. They solve different jobs.
E57
- Industry exchange format for reality capture
- Multiple scans, poses, checksums, optional images
- Common export from terrestrial laser scanners
PLY
- Simple point or mesh container
- Wide support in viewers and research tools
- Usually one flat list of vertices (no rich scan metadata)
When to convert E57 to PLY
Convert when your next step needs a PLY (preview in a mesh tool, custom script, or pipeline that does not read E57). Keep the original E57 if you still need poses, imagery, or archival exchange with survey software.
PLY cannot carry embedded panoramas the way E57 can. Our converter lists those images and lets you download them separately.