What computer do you need for a 3D scanner? Specs by brand

Official requirements by brand

The scanner you pick sets the computer you need, not the other way round. Each maker publishes its own floor, and they’re far apart. The table below takes each one from the maker’s own support or download page, checked in October 2026. “Minimum” means the software will open and run. Creality’s guide is blunt that the minimum is the configuration that can “barely start” the software, so treat the recommended column as the real target.

Scanner (software)	Minimum Windows PC	Recommended	Needs NVIDIA?
Creality Ferret, Otter (CrealityScan)	Core i5 8th gen, 8 GB RAM, no graphics card listed	Core i7 12th gen with RTX 3060, or Core Ultra Series 3 with Arc B390/B370; 16 GB	No. Intel Arc is supported; AMD is “not officially recommended”
Creality Raptor X, Raptor Pro, Sermoon, Pika (CrealityScan)	Core i7 7th gen, NVIDIA with 6 GB VRAM (the Pika’s product page asks for 8 GB) or Core Ultra Series 2 with Arc 140V/130V/140T; 16 GB	Core i7 13th gen, RTX 4060 or 3060 with 8 GB, or Arc B390/B370; 32 GB	No, but Raptor X’s blue-laser mode doesn’t run on Intel graphics yet
Revopoint POP 3/4, MINI 2, RANGE 2/3, INSPIRE, MIRACO (Revo Scan 6)	Core i7 13th gen or Ryzen 7 5800, 16 GB; RTX 3060 8 GB optional	Core i9 12th gen, 32 GB; RTX 4060 8 GB optional	No
Revopoint MetroX, MetroY (Revo Metro)	Core i7 13th gen or Ryzen 7 5800, 32 GB, RTX 3060 8 GB	Core i9 12th gen, 64 GB, RTX 4060 8 GB	Only for laser-line modes
Einstar 2, Einstar Rockit (EXStar Hub)	Core i7 13th gen or Ryzen 7 5800, 32 GB, RTX 2060	Core i9 13th gen or Ryzen 9 7900X, 64 GB, RTX 3060 or better	Only NVIDIA cards are listed
Einstar, first model (EXStar)	Core i7-11800H, 32 GB, GTX 1060 with 6 GB (Einstar calls these its “minimum suggested” specs, in a table headed “Recommended”)	No separate figure; at least 1,280 CUDA cores	Yes, CUDA only
3DMakerpro Moose, Seal, Mole, Lynx, Fox, Toucan (JMStudio)	Core i5 8th gen, 16 GB, MX250 with 2 GB	Core i7 8th gen, 16 GB, 3060 with 4 GB	Only NVIDIA cards are listed
Artec Studio 20 (pro reference)	NVIDIA Turing or newer with 6 GB VRAM; 16-64 GB RAM by scanner	NVIDIA with 8 GB VRAM	Yes, “NVidia GPU only”

Two lines in that table need explaining. Creality’s plain Raptor sits between the groups: it starts on the same 8 GB as the Ferret, but the recommended setup is an RTX 3060 and 32 GB. And Shining 3D’s standalone Einstar Vega scans on the device itself; its desktop companion, StarVision, asks only for a graphics card that supports Vulkan 1.1 and more than 32 GB of RAM.

Source: Performance requirements, Creality Wiki; Revo Scan 6 user manual, Revopoint; JMStudio, 3DMakerpro; Revo Metro user manual, Revopoint; EXStar Hub download, Einstar; Artec Studio 20: System requirements, Artec Support, checked October 2026. Note: Artec’s 16 GB applies to Eva in SD mode and Space Spider; other Artec scanners need 32 GB, Spider II 64 GB, and Artec’s trial download page lists 32 GB.

Do you need an NVIDIA graphics card?

Only for some brands. Einstar and Artec need one, Creality and Revopoint don’t, and 3DMakerpro lists only NVIDIA cards without saying others fail.

Einstar’s wiki says its EXStar software is compatible “only with NVIDIA graphics cards, as it relies on CUDA technology for rendering and meshing.” It suggests at least 1,280 CUDA cores and a card with CUDA compute capability above 4.3, which you can look up on NVIDIA’s CUDA GPU list. Artec Studio 20 goes further: NVIDIA only, Turing architecture or newer, at least 6 GB of video memory. Artec warns that on a weaker card “the HD reconstruction and AI algorithms will fail.”

Creality has moved the furthest away from NVIDIA. Its guide still says NVIDIA cards “are usually a must,” then lists Intel Arc as supported, including the integrated Arc graphics in Intel’s Core Ultra laptop chips. Creality ranks the Arc B390 in Core Ultra Series 3 chips alongside an RTX 5060 in its own testing. One catch: the Raptor X can’t use its blue-laser mode on Intel graphics yet.

Revopoint makes the card optional for Revo Scan 6. The exception is the POP 4’s markerless laser-line mode, which on Windows needs an NVIDIA or AMD graphics card. Revopoint’s tested list includes the RTX 3050 through 4090 and AMD’s RX 6600, RX 6750, RX 7700 and RX 9060/9070. Revo Metro, used by the MetroX and MetroY, also needs a dedicated card only in laser-line modes, and Revopoint says AMD cards get no acceleration there.

How much RAM for 3D scanning

Plan on 16 GB for an infrared structured-light scanner like the Ferret, Otter, POP or Moose, and 32 GB for a dedicated blue-laser scanner such as Creality’s Raptor or Revopoint’s MetroX. That’s Creality’s own split. It recommends 16 GB as “the recommended starting point” for its infrared Ferret and Otter, and 32 GB to 64 GB for the Raptor and Sermoon laser scanners, which generate more point-cloud data.

Running short of memory doesn’t just slow things down. Creality says the software may limit the number of points it captures, block the fine scanning mode, or crash during processing. Revo Metro, the software for Revopoint’s laser scanners, puts 64 GB in its recommended column, and Einstar recommends 64 GB for the Einstar 2 and Rockit.

The processor matters less than the RAM and graphics, but the floors are rising. Revopoint and Shining 3D now ask for a 13th-gen Core i7 or a Ryzen 7 5800 at minimum. Creality goes the other way on AMD processors and says they’re “not recommended at present due to stability and compatibility reasons.”

Laptops without NVIDIA graphics

You have three realistic routes if your laptop has only integrated graphics. Pick a scanner that doesn’t need NVIDIA, add an external graphics card, or do the scanning on a phone or tablet.

The easiest is choosing the scanner to suit the laptop. A Creality Ferret or Otter has no graphics card on its minimum list. Revopoint’s POP, MINI and RANGE lines have the card marked optional. A laptop with a Core Ultra Series 2 or 3 chip and Arc 140V, 140T or B390 graphics is on Creality’s supported list without any NVIDIA card. Laptops with AMD Radeon graphics fit Revopoint best, since Creality doesn’t recommend AMD and Einstar and Artec need NVIDIA.

Whatever you buy, scan plugged in. Creality’s guide says laptops should be on the power adapter with the “High Performance” power plan selected for wired scanning, so the processor and graphics aren’t held back. Most of these programs also run a performance test the first time they open. Creality’s flags any part that falls short, so run it before the return window closes.

Every maker in the table lists Windows 10 or 11. If your laptop is still on Windows 10, Microsoft ended support for it on October 14, 2025, and our guide to Windows 10 extended security updates covers the extension that now runs to October 12, 2027.

Can an external GPU (eGPU) help?

Yes, on a Windows laptop with a Thunderbolt port, according to one owner’s report. No maker in the table documents eGPU use, so this is a workaround, not a supported setup.

In a December 2023 thread on the eGPU.io forum, an Einstar owner said his Dell XPS 13 wouldn’t run the software without a dedicated card. He then fitted a second-hand Razer Core enclosure with an RTX 4070 Ti over Thunderbolt 3. He reported that it worked and that tracking and mesh processing were faster than on his earlier desktops. That’s one user, with one scanner. The forum’s admin noted that an eGPU behaves like a desktop card to the software but with less bandwidth, so results will vary.

An enclosure plus a desktop graphics card is a big outlay on its own, so it only makes sense if you already own a good Thunderbolt laptop. It doesn’t help on an Apple-silicon Mac: Apple says eGPUs need a Mac with an Intel processor.

Phone, tablet and standalone scanner options

Several consumer scanners can capture on a phone, which removes the PC from the scanning step. You’ll still want a computer for heavy cleanup, but the phone route changes what you need.

Creality’s CrealityScan app connects its scanners through a wireless bridge. The Ferret Pro, Raptor X and Otter Lite ship with one; the Ferret, Otter and other Raptor models need one bought separately. Creality wants a Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 or newer on Android, or an A15 chip or newer on iPhone, for the Ferret and Otter. The Raptor and Sermoon S1 need a Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 or newer, or an A16 or newer. Google Pixel phones aren’t recommended, and Samsung phones with Exynos chips aren’t supported.

Revopoint’s Revo Scan app runs on iOS and Android for the POP, MINI, RANGE and INSPIRE lines. Its Revo Scan 5 FAQ asks for Android 9 with 8 GB of RAM, or an iPhone newer than the iPhone X running iOS 14 or later. On iPhone the scanner connects over Wi-Fi only. 3DMakerpro has JMStudio apps for Android and iOS too.

Standalone scanners skip the second device entirely. Revopoint’s MIRACO series and the Einstar Vega have their own screens and processing. If you want to read more on whether any scanner earns its keep for printing, start with is a 3D scanner worth it for 3D printing.

What about a Mac?

Mac support is better than you might expect, but it depends on the exact scanner and the Mac. Creality, Revopoint and Einstar all publish Apple-silicon versions. Most ask for at least an M1 Pro (Creality recommends an M2) with 16 GB of memory, and the original Einstar wants 32 GB. Artec Studio doesn’t run on macOS at all. Our separate guide, “Do 3D scanners work on a Mac?”, goes brand by brand.

What to do next

Pick the scanner first, then open its maker’s requirements page and compare it with your computer’s RAM, processor and graphics. On Windows, Task Manager > Performance shows all three.
If you’re buying a laptop for scanning, get 32 GB of RAM if you can. That meets every minimum in the table except Artec’s Spider II, though Einstar and Revo Metro recommend 64 GB.
If your laptop has no NVIDIA card, shortlist Creality or Revopoint’s POP, MINI and RANGE scanners, or go phone-first.
Run the software’s built-in performance test as soon as the scanner arrives, plugged in and on the High Performance power plan, while you can still return it.

What computer do you need for a 3D scanner?