Bellus 3D Dental Facial Scanner
The Bellus3D Facial Scanner app known as Bellus3D DentalPro was a powerful and easy-to-use 3D face scanning app used on iPhones and iPads that enabled the capture and integration of 3D face scans into various workflows.
Bellus3D launched in 2015 and evolved into one of the best and most popular 3D face scanning technologies in the dental industry. Unfortunately, it seems like the company is going under as they have made the decision to wind down Bellus3D by the end of 2022.
You can no longer download the Bellus Dental Pro app from the Apple App Store since December 1, 2021.
Existing Dental Pro customers can continue to auto-renew their monthly subscriptions via in-app purchases till March 1, 2022. After that, your monthly subscription will no-longer be renewable and your service will terminate at the end of your monthly subscription period. For customers with an annual subscription, your service will terminate at the end of your subscription period but no later than December 31, 2022.
For Bellus Dental Pro users - export all your face models prior to your service termination date as your data will be deleted after that date. Data will not be recoverable.
With the Bellus App gone, now what?
With Bellus exiting the market, this leaves quite a large void in the facial scanning space. The app was by far the most popular facial scanning technology used in dentistry, primarily due to the ease of use and simply requiring an iPhone or iPad. 3Shape had also considered at one point to release a facial scanner but that too was scrapped. Are facial scanners doomed?
What are the alternatives now for those looking at their options? Here are some popular ones.
- Thunk3D Facial Scanner - a Chinese facial scanner commonly white labeled and resold such as InstaRisa 3D Facial Scanner
- Vectra Facial Scanner
- Revopoint Pop2
- Face Hunter by Zirkon Zahn
- ObiScanner
When you look at the alternatives, what becomes evident is that although Bellus had its workflow flaws, it will be sorely missed. The options available for a facial scanner all have their own weaknesses and often times cost more than the software dental pro app.
It will be interesting to see how CAD/CAM companies respond and innovate in the facial scanning space in the future. It is a key part of many workflows that is missing a good solution.