General Info: THEODOLITES are TRANSIT 's smarter cousins. THEODOLITES have the same functions for measuring horizontal and vertical angles but do it much more accurately. Survey THEODOLITES often had enclosed glass circles which were read throuph an Survey port. Most THEODOLITES have an Survey plumb to allow more accurate set up over a point. Current THEODOLITES used in construction today generally use a circle with a "bar code" read electronically and have an LCD readout.