"Best" thermal camera sub €1k (new or used) - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: KaneTW
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: June 16, 2021, 04:03:05 pm
content: I'm looking for a decent thermal camera in the sub 1k range. Prefer standalone, but phone tethered might work. Should be usable for PCB work and also separately for high-temp thermal imaging (of e.g. an oven) up to 550C-ish. It's fine if that requires multiple lenses.Prefer 320x240 or higher and 25Hz-ish.HT H8 looks good on paper, but seems like it sucks in practice.FLIR is too expensive (3k or so?) and I can't find the XT models used.Any suggestions?

author: Fraser
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 16, 2021, 04:07:40 pm
content: A used FLIR Exx series camera fits your requirements well. Look for an E40 or E50 in good condition on the used market. They sell for a range of prices, some below your stated budget. Once you have the camera, carry out the upgrade to release its full E60+ specification

author: KaneTW
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: June 16, 2021, 05:20:11 pm
content: Thanks, I put up an ebay notification for those.

author: DaJMasta
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 17, 2021, 01:20:46 am
content: I'm sort of surprised you can get an eXX for that these days, but if you can, it checks most of the boxes. The combination of high temp (above base spec, at least), high resolution, and high framerate is typically hard to find in that ballpark - especially when you're looking for temperature measurement (radiometric) and not just thermal image. Worth mentioning that even if your camera is capable of swapping lenses for applications (and many in this pricerange don't, at least not without DIY), a decent lens can easily run your entire budget new, or several hundred on the used market.Don't know if I have a specific recommendation for you, but if you want it for PCB work, you want to look through the datasheet at the minimum focus distance for the lens and the field of view - at 320x240 resolution it doesn't need to be something really narrow, but if you get a wider angle lens (45+ deg), even close in you won't see a ton of detail on very small targets. Also worth looking for a camera with manual focus rather than a fixed focus one, but again harder to find on the budget side.

author: Fraser
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 17, 2021, 09:43:28 am
content: I recently sold my E40bx (upgraded to E60) to a fellow forum member for £850. That was a fair price for such a unit and eBay showed that the price I’d an E40/E40bx fluctuates greatly. There a good buys to be found.A recent auction from may….£745 end price…….https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/FLIR-E40-Thermal-Imaging-Camera-20-650-C-160-x-120pixel-/174738884117?_trksid=p2349624.m46890.l49286An E60 sold in June for £450 !!https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Flir-E60-/203485908335?_trksid=p2349624.m46890.l49286

author: Bud
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 19, 2021, 02:20:35 pm
content: If i click on the last link it shows 950 though?..

author: Fraser
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 19, 2021, 02:54:40 pm
content: Weird. I could swear it said £450 in the "completed items" view. £950 is still a decent price though