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Want Predator-style heat vision on your phone without spending thousands? I’d wanted one of these for a long time and finally picked up the Seek Thermal CompactXR.
The XR is Seek’s extra-range thermal imaging camera. Mine plugs into an iPhone’s Lightning port, and Seek also makes an Android version with a micro USB plug. Note that the iPhone version uses Lightning, so on a USB-C iPhone you’d need an adapter or a different version. I paid about $150, and it’s listed higher on Amazon now, so check the current price. Here’s what it does outside in winter, around the house, and where it really shines.
- Screen faces you while the camera points away, like looking through a window
- Picks out heat signatures you can’t hide
- Great for spotting hot spots, animals and people in the dark
- Small hard case with a key ring loop
- Far cheaper than handheld FLIR-style cameras
- App prompts you to download it on first plug-in
- Much lower resolution than a good night-vision camera
- Makes a little click-click sound now and then (it seems to be recalibrating)
- Low contrast on hot days
- More zoomed in than your phone camera
- Lightning plug only on the iPhone version
▶ Watch the full review on YouTube
What you get
It’s a small housing with the thermal camera, a rubberized ring that turns to focus, and a Lightning connector. The plug goes in either direction, and the nice part is that when your screen faces you, the camera points away from you. Seek also has a fully self-contained handheld where you look down at the screen, and I’m sure you get used to that, but having the screen facing you is almost like looking through a window.
It also comes with a little smoked polycarbonate hard case. The camera snaps inside, and there’s a key ring loop so you can put it on a lanyard and keep it from getting dirty or wet.
Thermal vs. night vision
I really love night vision for the advantage it gives you at night. But it just amplifies ambient light. With thermal, you kind of can’t hide. You won’t get the resolution of a good latest-generation night-vision camera, but it really picks out hot items.
Contrast is everything. It’s winter here, so a bunny on the snow would stand out like crazy. If it’s 90 degrees outside, things would be much harder to notice. Even in a 70-degree room, though, you can easily pick out bodies and hands.
Setup and the app
You need Seek’s app. When you plug the camera in, it detects that you don’t have it and pops up a prompt to download it.
I noticed it makes a little click-click-click sometimes, almost like it’s autofocusing or recalibrating. It’s not super annoying, just something it does.
Outside, below freezing
I focused the lens with the ring and panned the yard. Right away you notice the thermal view is much more zoomed in than the regular phone camera. The sun showed up as a big white spot, the trees were outlined in green, the ground under them read warmer, and a tree trunk showed green to red. The shed behind the tree looked warmer because the sun was heating it.
My hand stood out clearly against the cold. Then I pressed my hand against a cold glass window for a second and pulled it away, and the camera showed the leftover heat print on the glass. Pretty cool.
Inside the house
Indoors I turned on the TV and panned the room. The TV was way redder than everything else, and so were the cable box under it and my wireless router. The sliding glass door and the window showed up blue and very cold, while the window shutters and the chairs below the window looked warmer.
What it’s good for
Looking for hot spots, like bad wiring, or keeping an eye on animals in the yard when it’s dark and cool out. You should be able to see the heat signature of critters or people, so it’s a bit of a security tool too.
What impressed me most is the price. Handheld forward-looking infrared cameras can cost hundreds up to thousands of dollars, so the Seek is much friendlier to most budgets. It’s a fun little tool.
FAQ
Does the Seek Thermal CompactXR work with iPhone?
The version I tested plugs into the Lightning port. For a USB-C iPhone, you’d need an adapter or a USB-C version.
Is there an Android version?
Yes. Seek also makes it with a micro USB plug for Android.
Do you need an app?
Yes. When you plug it in, it prompts you to download the Seek app.
Can it see through glass?
No, glass blocks thermal. A cold window reads blue, but it did show the heat print my hand left on the glass.
How much did it cost?
I paid about $150. Check the current price on Amazon.
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