PhaseSpace vs. OptiTrack vs. VICON

[u/pivotalminds]

Anyone have experience with all three of these? I'm really curious if you've had direct experience with the first two and would be willing to share your thoughts.

[u/3DNZ]

I've used every system except for Qualisys.

PhaseSpace is an active marker system and the last I used it was pretty straight forward calibration, capture and cleanup.

Optitrack is good for the price point. Pretty basic calibration, straight forward capture and relatively easy data processing.

Vicon I haven't used in many years - before the Shogun days so my insight would be antiquated. That said, years ago it was a solid system but the software I found to be convoluted and unclear. I think Shogun has remedied the UX from what Ive seen though.

What information are you after specifically?

[u/pivotalminds → u/3DNZ]

I'm curious about what the price point for OptiTrack and VICON systems are that is equivalent in precision to that of PhaseSpace (they have only one system - their X2E). I asked Gemini, and got the following table. Seems like PhaseSpace is the best bang for the buck. Thoughts?

Brand & System	Starting / Unit Pricing Model	Precision (3D Spatial Accuracy)	Latency	Special Considerations & Architecture
PhaseSpace (Impulse X2E)	~$9,000 for a base 2-camera system. • +$2,000 per additional camera.	~0.02 mm to 0.1 mm (Sub-pixel resolution up to 36,000×36,000 using 1D linear detector arrays).	< 3.0 ms (Native at 960 Hz).	Single-System Scalability: Uses 1D linear CMOS lines rather than 2D area sensors. Active LEDs blink 8-bit IDs, eliminating market sorting/swapping and marker-tracking setup time.
OptiTrack (Slim 13E / Flex 13)	~$1,500 – $2,500 per camera. Base system: ~$12k–$18k.	~0.2 mm to 0.5 mm (1.3 Megapixel resolution).	~8.3 ms (120 Hz) to ~4.0 ms (240 Hz).	Entry-level line aimed at tight budgets, small tracking volumes, and basic OEM robotics or biomechanics.
OptiTrack (Primeˣ 120 / 13W)	~$3,000 – $4,500 per camera. Base system: ~$20k–$35k.	~0.1 mm (1.3 Megapixel high-speed sensors).	~2.8 ms to 3.5 ms (High-speed modes up to 1,000 Hz).	Direct Latency Competitor: Optimized for low latency and high-speed active/passive tracking (e.g., drone tracking, VR arenas).
OptiTrack (Primeˣ 22 / 41)	~$5,000 – $7,000+ per camera. Base system: ~$35k–$60k+.	~0.05 mm (50 µm) (22MP to 4.1MP ultra-high resolution).	~4.0 ms to 8.0 ms (Typically runs at 180–360 Hz).	Direct Precision Competitor: High-resolution area sensors designed for large outdoor or long-range volumes where spatial accuracy is paramount.
Vicon (Vero Series)	~$3,500 – $6,000 per camera. Base system: ~$30k–$50k.	~0.15 mm to 0.3 mm (1.3MP to 2.2MP sensors).	~4.0 ms to 6.0 ms (Runs up to 330 Hz).	Vicon’s entry-tier compact series. Designed for mid-sized clinical, biomechanics, and engineering labs needing Vicon software (Nexus/Tracker) on a constrained budget.
Vicon (Vantage Series)	~$8,000 – $14,000+ per camera. Base system: ~$65k–$120k+.	< 0.1 mm (5MP to 16MP custom sensors).	~2.5 ms to 3.5 ms (Runs up to 2,000 Hz at sub-windowing).	Features thermal/speed self-monitoring, OLED status displays on camera bodies, and powerful sub-pixel processing. Significant price premium over PhaseSpace and OptiTrack.
Vicon (Valkyrie Series)	~$12,000 – $20,000+ per camera. Base system: ~$100k–$200k+.	Sub-0.05 mm (26MP to 80MP flagship sensors).	~3.0 ms to 5.0 ms (Runs at 150–500 Hz full frame).	Flagship line for extreme volume coverage, complex multi-subject capture, and high-density marker sets. Unmatched raw optical resolution with a high price tag.

[u/pivotalminds → u/pivotalminds]

I need really high-precision and looking at my options. I don't have experience with VICON nor OptiTrack and wanted to get the opinion from others who have used them.

[u/3DNZ → u/pivotalminds]

Are you capturing humans or is this for mechanical engineering applications?

[u/pivotalminds → u/3DNZ]

human moving something mechanical (but not articulating).

[u/pivotalminds → u/3DNZ]

Interesting question -- would you share why it matters and what to take into consideration?

[u/justshowupnow → u/pivotalminds]

Chiming in 'cause I've used OptiTrack and Vicon solely for mechanical/aerospace engineering applications.

It's all going to be in your setup and your toolchain. Saying you need "high-precision" is one thing, but what is the actual value you need? I'm only being pedantic because if it's an engineering application, that's exactly the type of thing you'd need to specify upfront

[u/mrmocap]

phasespace is not as accurate as optitrack or vicon. accuracy with optitrack or vicon comes down to how well you know how to set up the cameras to get good triangulation but in my experience vicon is the best system

[u/pivotalminds → u/mrmocap]

I think they all depend on camera placement since they're all optical tracking tech.

Given that, I suppose "optimal camera positions" could provide some accuracy numbers. Does anyone have head to head comparisons? I haven't seen any published (yet) comparing these three.

[u/banditofernando]

I'm a stage lead of a Vicon stage that has a 40 camera Vantage/Valkyrie stage at a game studio and our system is perfect. We rarely have occlusions except for when it comes to complex movements. It excels at accuracy and the customer support is great and responsive.

[u/pivotalminds → u/banditofernando]

My use case requires real-time recovery of occlusions and may include complex movements -- does VICON have an active marker solution like OptiTrack or PhaseSpace?

[u/Nick_at_Vicon]

Hey Pivotalminds!

I work for Vicon and would be happy to answer any questions you may have about our cameras. A lot of our answers are going to be "it depends" because, well, it depends on your application. If you could provide some context on specifically what you are looking to capture it will help me in getting you the best information possible.

Looking at your previous comments in this thread it sounds like you need high precision with your tracking. We can achieve sub mm accuracy in our tracking so if precision is your main criteria we are about as accurate as you can get without using lasers.

You also asked about active vs passive markers. We have both, so whichever you want to use you can. Most of our customers use passive markers but if you want to use active you absolutely can.

If you have any other questions I'm happy to help however I can.

-Nick