Elevating Retinal Diagnostics: The Complete Guide to the Optos Ultra-Widefield (UWF) Modality Suite

In high-volume eye care clinics and specialized ophthalmic practices, comprehensive retinal imaging is critical for early pathology detection and treatment planning. Traditional standard-field imaging captures only 30° to 45° of the retina in a single view, often requiring time-consuming montaging or dilation to evaluate peripheral lesions.

The Optos Ultra-Widefield (UWF®) platform changes this standard by capturing 200° (or roughly 82%) of the retina in a single, high-resolution image in under half a second. Utilizing low-powered scanning laser ophthalmoscopy (cSLO) technology, Optos devices operate effectively through non-mydriatic 2 mm pupils and hazy media.

Selecting the right device requires understanding the distinct imaging modalities, target clinical workflows, and performance specifications across the core Optos line-up: Daytona, MonacoPro, California, and Silverstone.

1. Optos Daytona: High-Speed Primary Screening

Core Role: Designed for primary care practices, optometry clinics, and routine screening workflows where fast, non-mydriatic imaging is essential.

Daytona serves as the foundation of UWF screening. It replaces traditional fundus photo workflows with speed and ease, utilizing red and green lasers to generate high-resolution composite images that distinguish between sensory retina and choroidal layers.

Key Hardware & Diagnostic Specifications:

• Field of View: 200° Single Capture
• Capture Speed: < 0.4 seconds per image
• Optical Wavelengths: Red (635 nm) and Green (532 nm) lasers
• On-Screen Resolution: 20 μm standard / 14 μm optomap plus
• Available Modalities: Color Composite (RG), Sensory View, Choroidal View, and Green Autofluorescence (FAF)

2. Optos MonacoPro: Integrated Spectral-Domain OCT

Core Role: Tailored for refractive practices, comprehensive eye centers, and multi-specialty clinics requiring structural cross-sectional imaging alongside widefield photography.

MonacoPro combines 200° UWF color imaging with integrated Spectral-Domain Optical Coherence Tomography (SD-OCT). This dual-modality design allows clinicians to evaluate peripheral pathology alongside 40° cross-sectional scans of the macula and optic nerve head—all from a single desktop device.

Key Hardware & Diagnostic Specifications:

• Field of View: 200° UWF + 40° Central SD-OCT
• OCT Signal Source: Superluminescent Diode (SLD) at 840 nm
• OCT A-Scan Speed: Up to 70,000 A-scans per second
• OCT Axial / Transverse Resolution: < 7 μm axial / < 20 μm transverse (in tissue)
• OCT Scan Depth: 2.3 mm
• OCT Scan Types: Line, Raster, Retinal Topography, ONH Topography, RNFL
• Available Modalities: Color Composite (RG), Sensory, Choroidal, Green FAF, and SD-OCT

3. Optos California: Advanced Retinal Vascular Diagnostics

Core Role: Built for vitreoretinal specialists, medical retina clinics, and academic research settings performing vascular angiography.

California incorporates blue, red, green, and infrared lasers to provide comprehensive vascular and metabolic assessment. It supports Angiography modalities—including Fluorescein Angiography (FA) and Indocyanine Green Angiography (ICG)—allowing clinicians to track diabetic retinopathy, retinal vein occlusions, and choroidal neovascularization into the far periphery.

Key Hardware & Diagnostic Specifications:

• Field of View: 200° Single Capture (4-in-1 Color Depth Imaging™)
• Optical Wavelengths: Red (635 nm), Green (532 nm), Blue (488 nm), and Infrared (802 nm)
• On-Screen Resolution: 20 μm standard / 14 μm optomap plus
• Available Modalities: Color RG, True-Color RGB, Sensory, Choroidal, Green FAF, Blue FAF, Fluorescein Angiography (FA), and Indocyanine Green Angiography (ICG)
• Alignment: Motorized chinrest and headrest for complex patient positioning

4. Optos Silverstone: Flagship UWF Guided Swept-Source OCT

Core Role: The complete diagnostic platform for advanced surgical retina, ocular oncology, and academic research centers.

Silverstone stands as the most advanced unit in the Optos range. It integrates 200° UWF multi-modal angiography with a 1050 nm Swept-Source OCT (SS-OCT) engine. Unlike central-only OCT systems, Silverstone provides UWF-guided OCT scanning, enabling clinicians to place an OCT scan sample anywhere across the 200° optomap image, out into the extreme periphery.

Key Hardware & Diagnostic Specifications:

• Field of View: 200° UWF with targeted peripheral SS-OCT positioning
• OCT Wavelength: 1050 nm Swept-Source laser (deeper tissue penetration through sclera)
• OCT Acquisition Speed: Up to 100,000 A-scans per second
• OCT Axial / Transverse Resolution: < 7 μm axial / < 20 μm transverse
• OCT Scan Depth: Up to 2.5 mm in tissue
• Available Modalities: Up to 9 modalities—Color RG/RGB, Green & Blue FAF, FA, ICG, and Peripheral SS-OCT

Direct Technical Comparison

Summary

Matching the right device to your practice comes down to clinical scope. For primary diagnostic screening, Daytona offers fast, reliable baseline documentation. Practices managing structural macula diseases alongside screening benefit from MonacoPro's integrated SD-OCT. For specialty clinics requiring dynamic vascular imaging, California delivers dedicated multi-channel angiography, while Silverstone provides the complete diagnostic solution with swept-source OCT guided across the entire 200° periphery.