FLIR ONE PRO LT USB-C Thermal Imaging Camera

Product Information

The FLIR ONE Edge Pro also features an extended battery life compared to previous generations of the FLIR ONE and an easily-recognized battery life indicator, making it ideal for more prolonged inspection situations including disaster restoration, home inspection, energy auditing, and industrial equipment diagnostics.

The FLIR ONE Edge Pro is designed with a spring-loaded clip, and that means that it's totally brand and device-agnostic – allowing users (and companies with several workers) to attach the camera to many types of mobile phones and tablets. While the FLIR C-Series produces useful images in good light via MSX, this camera can do so at any time, since it doesn’t rely on visual light to boost its resolution. For our money, that makes it the best thermal-imaging camera for night use today. Beyond the visible spectrum, there is an unseen world of heat radiation. Arty infrared film photographs aside, the practical uses of thermal imaging devices – also known as infrared thermal imagers – traditionally belonged only to military and professional budgets. The FLIR C3-X and FLIR C5 are good-looking compact thermal imagers that are well suited to DIYers and contractors.With a rugged body that’ll survive a bit of workplace rough-and-tumble, both have two cameras and a 5-megapixel optical lens. The IR maxes out at 160 x 120 on the pricier C5, allowing it to take advantage of Flir’s MSX technology. This patented method uses an edge-detection algorithm on the higher-resolution visual light image, overlaying this with the IR image to make the picture easier to comprehend.Thermal imaging works in the dark, or through smoke, but can be fooled by the reflectiveness (emissivity) of a surface. Because IR is part of the electromagnetic spectrum, like visible light, it also has similar properties when it encounters lenses or rain. For professional use, it pays to read up a bit on understanding thermograms, but you’ll understand the basics the moment you power on your thermal camera. Depending on the software, you can also take retrospective measurements from the thermal JPEGs. How we test thermal cameras Earlier I mentioned the two temperature range settings: -4 to 248 and 32 to 752. So if you point the camera at an object with a temperature that's outside the range you've selected, you don’t get a warning. It just displays the temperature at the end of the selected range. For example, when I set the camera to the lower range and pointed it at a gas flame, it showed the max temperature at about 266 degrees. But when I switched the camera to its higher range, the temperature reading of the flame rose to over 700. Additionally, app developers have access to the FLIR ONE software development kit (SDK) to create custom applications for exclusive use with the FLIR ONE Edge Pro. This thermal-imaging camera also connects to your phone but provides more resolution (320 x 240 pixels) as well as higher sensitivity (-40˚F to 626˚F) than the Flir One – even the Pro version. And while that pushes up the price, it does make it a great choice for contractors, engineers, inspectors, and others looking for more detailed images.

The camera's default setting combines images from both cameras, so you can see an “outline” of a real-world object colored in with the temperature information. You can choose to view just the IR or visible light images. These settings can be selected in the FLIR One app, which is available for iOS and Android. This app controls the camera and keeps a library of saved images and video; no data is stored on the camera itself. This easy-to-use app allows you to control how the sensors’ temperature measurements are displayed in the images and videos, either by marking the hottest and coldest spots with crosshairs or setting up to three spots in the image to be continuously measured, which is especially useful in video mode. The ergonomic advantage in this instance isn’t enough to make up for the shortcomings of the wireless connection that make it possible. I found the live video feed to be laggy and jerky, forcing me to wait seconds at a time when trying to position the camera at a good angle. The thermal imager only scans 8.7 times per second and must occasionally “hiccup” to calibrate the temperature range. The lag I saw with the Edge Pro, however, went far beyond these technically necessary quirks, particularly in comparison with the Flir One and Flir One Pro. With adjustable focus, the lens can be set on subjects as far as 550m (1,800ft). That’s not only handy for outdoor pursuits but allows you to take full advantage of the relatively high resolution to get sharp thermal images at any distance.On the downside, while the FLIR One includes a visible light camera, the Seek CompactPro uses your phone’s camera to provide a split-screen picture-by-picture function, which is subject to some parallax issues. The camera is more rugged than the Flir One and Flir One Pro, but only slightly. Its solid, rubber-coated form is rated to survive a 6.6-foot drop compared with a 5.0-foot drop for the other cameras. It also meets an IP54 rating so it can handle drips and splashes, though it isn’t designed to be rinsed off under a faucet or submerged. At first glance, it might seem that the chunkier One Edge Pro isn’t a step forward at all, but in reality, the larger size and the removal of the Achilles heel that was the physical connection makes this a much more practical device (it also means you can use on iPhones and Android devices without having to buy another!) Both versions have a 3-inch touchscreen and can store around 500 images onboard to transfer via Micro USB. The ability to type notes via a touch keyboard can be handy, too. If you can stretch to it, the FLIR C5 model adds more analysis features and Wi-Fi so you can get images to your phone and to your software.

Teledyne FLIR promises that it will be easy to recognize where problems are located and identify targets, thanks to FLIR's MSX (Multi-Spectral Dynamic Imaging), 160 × 120 (19,200 pixels) thermal resolution and VividIR, which combines multiple image frames together to deliver a clearer image. FLIR ONE Edge Pro price and availability The FLIR ONE Edge Pro is the most versatile and advanced thermal-visible mobile camera yet thanks to its detachable form factor, designed to fit comfortably in your hand. It offers significantly greater flexibility by eliminating the need for specific connection ports or operating systems,” said Chris Bainter, vice president of marketing and business development, Teledyne FLIR. “In addition to the new hardware design, Teledyne FLIR is providing more software tools to empower new and untrained users to conduct thermography inspections, process images, and create reports. Common uses range from building inspection and auto repair to industrial maintenance applications.”Note: the older CAT S61, still available in places, had a lower resolution IR camera, but offered laser measuring, offering an alternative with even more flexibility. Although there are several of us on the team, including me (Adam Juniper), we generally test thermal cameras by using them in day-to-day tasks like inspecting ventilation/insulation, heating equipment (radiators, boilers) and plumbing (hot water pipes and taps). We also test any special claims made by the manufacturer about individual products, as well as the overall experience. The FLIR One Edge Pro performs well but is not perfect. The fact that captured videos are limited to a jerky nine frames per second is frustrating. To be fair, that isn’t the company’s fault: The US government doesn’t allow higher-frame-rate cameras to be exported to other countries without an export license. The pictures the One Edge Pro provides are about as good as those from the Flir One Pro, which is unsurprising because they use the same thermal imager. The lower-resolution visual camera isn’t as sharp if you view in visual-only mode, but in MSX mode the two devices seem to identify and outline contours well. The “RESNET” compliant and IP54-rated FLIR ONE Edge Pro has a spring-loaded clip designed to allow operators to attach the camera to many types of mobile phones and tablets. Thanks to the combined Bluetooth and Wi-Fi connection, users can operate the Edge Pro up to 30 meters away from their mobile device, providing the flexibility to effectively inspect hard-to-reach places or those scenarios requiring greater standoff distances to maintain operator safety.