The HikMicro Explorer HM-E20 Plus Vs Infiray XH09 dongle camera - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: Fraser
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 23, 2025, 04:09:30 pm
content: I have bought a used “as new” HikMicro HM-E20 Plus mobile phone dongle and will be looking at its performance with interest.Having previously looked at advertising for the Infiray XH09 and HikMicro E20 Plus, I thought that the HikMicro was just a relabelled XH09. Now I am not so sure. The lens and FOV specifications for the two cameras differ slightly and the E20 Plus does not offer temperature measurement with its supplied mobile phone APP. No PC software is officially available for the E20 Plus. Both cameras claim 50fps frame rate which is double that found on most 256x192 pixel cameras.I seem to recall that the XH09 suffered from poor temperature measurement accuracy and was believed to use an Infiray “V2” core. From what I have read, those who have delved into the world of “Infiray “V2” cores believe that some of the image processing that used to take place in the camera dongle has now been moved to the host. Exactly what was changed in the move to “V2” cores is still not clear to me but “V2” dongles did appear to cost less than previous V1 cameras for a given specification. If anyone knows more about Infiray V1 vs V2 cores, I would love to hear from them. I am aware that software designed for V1 cored cameras failed to work on V2 cameras without some modifications, but that could just be HW/FW driver related stuff.Once the HikMicro E20 Plus arrives I shall test it with various APP’s and PC software to see if any of them will work with this particular camera. If it is truly a non-radiometric core, it will be incapable of accurate temperature measurement even if an APP supports temperature measurements.There is a very interesting teardown of an Infiray T2S+ on the internet and an associated web page. I shall add the url’s in a minute.Fraser

author: Fraser
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 23, 2025, 04:20:11 pm
content: Link to the T2S+ teardown page…..https://dmytroengineering.com/content/projects/t2s-plus-thermal-camera-hackingYou tube video of the teardown by the same person….https://youtu.be/bePf-qhZ_Vg?si=G8Jzv8dfl1mgY4TxFraser

author: Fraser
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 23, 2025, 04:26:25 pm
content: The Infiray XH09 teardown by forum member “Dogman”……https://www.eevblog.com/forum/thermal-imaging/xh09-teardown/Fraser

author: Fraser
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 23, 2025, 04:36:39 pm
content: Specifications for thecHikMicro E20 Plus and Infiray XH09 dongle cameras.The E20 Plus has a slightly narrower FOV, NETD is higher at 50mK Vs 40mK and it has no temperature measurement capability in the supplied HikMicro APP.Fraser

author: Fraser
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 28, 2025, 06:26:19 pm
content: The HikMicro E20 Plus camera dongle arrived today and is “as new” so a good purchase.A quick test with the HikMicro official APP showed the E20 Plus to be in great working condition, but there is no temperature measurement capability as reported by other owners.Testing the other APPs that I have on the same phone resulted in the following…1. Infiray P2 Pro APP - Phone offers this as compatible, but the APP does not see that the E20 Plus is connected.2. Thermal Master P2 APP - Phone offers this as compatible, but the APP does not see that the E20 Plus is connected.3. Infiray T2 Pro APP - Phone does not offer this APP as compatible and the APP does not see that the E20 Plus is connected.4. Xinfrared XH09 APP - Phone does not offer this APP as compatible and the APP does not see that the E20 Plus is connected.It would appear that the HikMicro E20 Plus may have an ID that is not recognised by the various APPs.In due course I will try the Infiray SDK with the E20 Plus to see if it can recognise the cameras chipset and work with it.Fraser

author: svgurus
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: May 31, 2025, 11:02:29 am
content: I have both of these cameras) but almost didnt use them. Hik is noticeably bigger, xh09 is smaller than t2s+

author: Fraser
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 31, 2025, 12:49:47 pm
content: The Hikvision E20 Plus is a bit of a disappointment in terms of what it offers the user. It is basically a thermal spotting scope that fits on a phone, rather than the handheld thermal scopes that we are familiar with. That combined with poor flat field (likely caused by the lens system NUC, as FFC does not correct it) and a total lack of any measurement capability, makes this a very limited tool. The fact that it is also only useable with the HikMicro basic APP is also a limitation. The HikMicro E20 Plus is not a camera dongle that I could recommend, even at the ~£80 that I paid for it.Fraser