SkyeBrowse vs DroneDeploy: Video-to-3D vs Enterprise Drone Mapping Platform

DroneDeploy is a cloud-based drone mapping platform built around automated flight planning and photogrammetry for construction, mining, and agriculture. It requires specific DJI drones, a proprietary flight app, and hours of processing time. SkyeBrowse takes a fundamentally different approach: patented videogrammetry that turns video from any camera into a 3D model in minutes.

Contents

• Device Compatibility
• Processing Speed
• Capture Flexibility
• Accuracy and Measurement
• Pricing
• Compliance and Security
• Output and Integration
• Head-to-Head Comparison
• The Bottom Line
• Related Comparisons
• Get a SkyeBrowse Recommendation

Device Compatibility

DroneDeploy supports a limited set of DJI drones running its proprietary flight app. If your team flies a Skydio, Autel, or any non-DJI platform, DroneDeploy cannot process the data. Handheld cameras, smartphones, body-worn cameras, and 360 cameras are completely excluded. Every operator needs DroneDeploy's mobile app installed and configured before capture can begin.

SkyeBrowse accepts any .MP4 or .MOV video file from any device. A DJI Mavic, an iPhone, a GoPro, a body-worn camera, a 360 camera: all of them feed the same videogrammetry pipeline. There is no proprietary app to install and no hardware vendor lock-in. If a device records video, SkyeBrowse processes it. That means your team documents scenes with whatever equipment is available, not whatever DroneDeploy decided to support this quarter.

Processing Speed

DroneDeploy processes drone photos through cloud-based photogrammetry. A typical 200-400 photo dataset takes 2-6 hours. Larger datasets or high-resolution settings push turnaround to 12-24 hours. Results arrive when the cloud queue clears, not when your team needs them. A scene captured at 9 AM may not be viewable until the afternoon or the next morning.

SkyeBrowse processes video at a 1:1 ratio. Ten minutes of video yields a 3D model in approximately ten minutes. An officer orbits a crash scene, uploads, and has a court-ready model before leaving the area. A construction manager walks a site, uploads, and reviews measurements during the same visit. DroneDeploy measures turnaround in hours. SkyeBrowse measures it in minutes.

Capture Flexibility

DroneDeploy requires a pre-planned drone flight. Operators define boundaries, set overlap percentages, choose a grid or orbit pattern, and launch an automated mission. This works for scheduled surveys at known locations. It does not work when a patrol officer arrives at an unplanned crash scene, when a firefighter needs interior documentation, or when an insurance adjuster is walking a property with nothing but a smartphone.

SkyeBrowse requires only that someone press record. No flight plan, no pre-configured app, no boundary definition. An operator flies a drone manually, walks with a phone, or clips on a body-worn camera. The videogrammetry engine extracts frames, matches features, and builds the model regardless of how the video was captured. DroneDeploy covers planned drone missions. SkyeBrowse covers everything else as well.

Need help deciding whether DroneDeploy or SkyeBrowse fits your team’s workflow? Reach out and we can map the right approach to your mission, staffing model, and timeline.

Accuracy and Measurement

DroneDeploy produces orthomosaics and point clouds at accuracy levels tied to flight altitude, photo overlap, and ground control points. Without GCPs, relative accuracy depends entirely on the drone's onboard GPS. DroneDeploy does not publish standardized accuracy tiers.

SkyeBrowse offers three documented accuracy tiers. Lite delivers 2-6 inch accuracy for operational documentation. Premium delivers 8K resolution at 0.25 inch accuracy for detailed site records. Premium Advanced delivers 16K resolution at 0.1 inch accuracy with AI moving object removal that strips pedestrians, vehicles, and other transient objects from the final model. Every tier is documented, repeatable, and defensible. DroneDeploy's accuracy varies by setup. SkyeBrowse's accuracy is guaranteed by tier.

Pricing

DroneDeploy charges $329-$499 per month per seat. The Individual plan covers a single user with limited processing. The Business plan at $499/month adds collaboration and API access. Enterprise pricing requires a custom contract. Five operators on Business plans cost $30,000 per year in subscriptions alone, before hardware. The per-seat model means costs multiply with headcount, and teams that map infrequently still pay the full monthly rate.

SkyeBrowse offers per-model credit packs and subscription tiers. Costs scale with usage, not headcount. There is no per-seat multiplier. A department that processes 10 models per month pays for 10 models, whether one officer uploads them or ten different officers do. Traditional scene documentation costs roughly $360 in personnel time and equipment. SkyeBrowse reduces that to approximately $25 per scene, cutting documentation from 3 hours with 4 staff to 10 minutes with 1 operator.

Compliance and Security

DroneDeploy offers SOC 2 Type II compliance and standard enterprise cloud security. It does not advertise CJIS compliance, FedRAMP authorization, or government-specific cloud hosting. Public safety agencies handling criminal evidence, crash reconstruction data, or sensitive law enforcement records face a compliance gap.

SkyeBrowse runs on AWS GovCloud (US) with FedRAMP Moderate alignment and full CJIS compliance. Every model carries audit trails and controlled sharing permissions. Data retention is guaranteed for 5 years on Premium and Premium Advanced tiers. For any agency subject to CJIS security policies, SkyeBrowse meets the standard. DroneDeploy does not.

Output and Integration

DroneDeploy produces orthomosaics (GeoTIFF, JPEG), 3D meshes (OBJ), point clouds (LAS), and digital surface models. Its analytics layer adds AI annotations, volumetric calculations, and progress comparisons within a proprietary dashboard. Integration with Procore, Autodesk, and Bluebeam keeps data inside the DroneDeploy ecosystem. Viewing and measuring require DroneDeploy accounts or exports.

SkyeBrowse exports LAZ point clouds, GLB meshes, and GeoTIFF orthomosaics: open formats that feed into any GIS, CAD, or forensic reconstruction tool without vendor lock-in. The browser-based 3D viewer lets prosecutors, adjusters, command staff, and partner agencies review models through a shared link. No account, no software install, no proprietary viewer. DroneDeploy centralizes data in its platform. SkyeBrowse puts data wherever it needs to go.

Head-to-Head Comparison

The Bottom Line

DroneDeploy is built for enterprise drone programs running scheduled photogrammetry surveys with DJI hardware. It excels at automated flight planning and AI-powered construction analytics for teams that can accept hours-long processing and per-seat subscription costs. If your workflow is exclusively planned drone flights at known sites with DJI equipment, DroneDeploy covers that use case.

SkyeBrowse covers that use case and every other one. Any camera, any operator, any location, processed in minutes instead of hours. CJIS-compliant security that DroneDeploy cannot match. Open export formats that DroneDeploy locks behind its dashboard. Documented accuracy tiers that DroneDeploy does not offer. Per-model pricing that does not penalize growing teams. For public safety, construction, insurance, or any team that needs fast, flexible, compliant 3D documentation, SkyeBrowse is the stronger platform.

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Get a SkyeBrowse Recommendation

If your team documents scenes across varied locations with mixed capture devices and needs models in minutes, SkyeBrowse fits that workflow. Public safety, construction, and insurance teams use it to cut documentation from hours to minutes while maintaining accuracy that holds up in court and in the field.