TOPDON Thermal Camera TC001 Android, 512x384 TISR Resolution, -20℃-550℃

I've been looking for a reasonably priced thermal camera for some time to help with property insulation and electrical work. Most of the units on the market are either low resolution or very expensive or in many cases both. This camera has a very useable thermal resolution at a reasonable price. The software has a good range of features and loaded without issues on my Android phone and tablet The camera and software have worked without any issues so far. Pros: Good resolution Reasonable price Small enough to pop in a shirt pocket Operates pretty much instantly when it's plugged into the phone. It seems accurate enough for my purposes and is very easy to use. It is powered directly from the device it's connected to and battery consumption seems minimal during normal use. Cons : None so far It's not often a reasonably priced product does everything it says it will and performs flawlessly. Having read many less than stellar reviews for the market leader's equivalent product I'm very glad I purchased this device.

Fantastic little thermal camera, I have owned a FLIR one gen 2 for a few years now and was very happy with it until the internal battery started to decline. I saw a review of the TC001 and thought I might try it as a replacement to my FLIR camera. I was very impressed by this product, so easy to use, just install the app from the play store and plug it in and it's ready to go. The 256x192 resolution makes a great improvement on the FLIR camera and I was surprised with the detail it shows. But what really makes this unit superior over the FLIR camera is the 25Hz frame rate compared to 8.5Hz (due to US export control). The FLIR camera uses two cameras, one thermal and one normal and used their MSX technology to combine the two cameras which gives really good image detail with a lower thermal resolution and I thought this would make the TC001 inferior but this is not the case, comparing the two I prefer the TC001. Just one more point to make is some reviews say the image\video periodically "stutters or freezes" this is completely normal as the camera has a shutter that calibrates it from time to time as most thermal cameras do. To sum up it is a very capable camera at a great price, I highly recommend it, only for Android devices currently and it also works on a windows PC. The Android app is very good with a lot of options to add measurement points (compared to the FLIR app), the windows app needs to be improved a bit but I believe is quite new currently and Topdon are planning to improve it in the future. There are a lot of features I have not mentioned in this review as it's getting a bit long.

Comes with a standard USB adaptor, but not an old style mini USB adaptor, so I couldn't use it on my phone - and I don't think my phone (moto) has the facility to allow the imager to be used with it anyway. As it is quite an expensive item the supplier could at least have included a second mini usb adaptor. Anyway it works well on my laptop and produces decent usable images. Not sure about its accuracy as it reads to 0.1 'C but claims an accuracy of only +- 2.0 'C. However this hasn't prevented me from being able to see what I wanted to see and the consistency/repeatability of the image has been good, so I have confidence in the trends I'm looking for. It's unfortunate that the phone software appears be more extensive / sophisticated than the windows software, but on windows its still a useful tool showing trends of max and min viewed temperature in the image and an 'accurate' determination of temperature at selectable points within the image. Update /Correction On further investigation, my phone (Moto E5 play) has a micro USB port, so I bought an OTG capable micro USB male to standard USB female cable and, hey presto, the imager was immediately recognised. I now have the equivalent of a direct connection to the phone but using blu-tac to temporarily fix the imager to the phone (or laptop) – it looks odd, but actually has advantages because it allows the imager to be positioned relative to the phone camera and should make the phone / imager ports less vulnerable to physical damage. The imager is a remarkable little unit and works very well on both windows and android systems. Not having the more sophisticated software on windows isn’t actually much of a disadvantage as, to me, the larger screen of a laptop makes up for the software limitations. It gives surprisingly clear images (providing there is some sort of temperature profile for the unit to sense) and I was amazed that with only placing my hand on the strings of my guitar all 6 strings were discernable – the thinnest string being only 8 thousands of an inch diameter (I was just looking to see how fine a resolution is achievable). The android system allows a camera image to be displayed/superimposed on the thermal image, but it takes a bit of fiddling to get the images to line up and the app only seems to record the thermal image. However, by switching apps between imager and camera I took similar photo and thermal images for future comparison. Again, with the unit’s high resolution, the need for superimposing thermal and photo images is reduced – so, for me, it’s probably not a facility I see much of a need for. Apart from the lack of an adapter plug for use with micro USB phones, probably the only improvements I would suggest would be : 1. for the windows system to be able to record images/screens/videos (as the android system does) without having to resort to a 3rd party program 2.for the windows system to be able to display a temperature gradient bar (as the android system does) 2. for the temperature gradient bars to show more than just the maximum and minimum temperatures 3. to have options for the temperature gradient bar to be shown or hidden in both viewed and recorded images. Having said that, the existing options to pinpoint maximum and minimum temperatures at multiple locations provide more than enough information for most situations I can think of - unless one is looking to do something very detailed like validate a finite element thermal model of something, in which case you’d need to have a better understanding the accuracies of the readings than I have managed.

I purchased this for two jobs. To check the insulation in my house and to see where wildlife were up in the trees when out with my camera. It performs very well in the house, is very sensitive and has a good resolution to you can see what you are looking at, less so out and about looking for wildlife. There is an option to overlay the mobile phone camera over the units thermal output so you can align the two camera outputs. This makes it far easier to detect items that are of a similar heat level. The wildlife issue is about how big they are and if they are giving off heat. I take alot of birds and they are so insulated with their feathers that the small birds can't be seen. Larger birds and things like squirrels that keep totally still when they see you are detected if you turn the contrast up high and switch to the black and white screen output option. Obviously things like deer are fine and can be seem hiding behind light bushes. Want to try to see if it can see bats flying but that is for later in the year. I keep the thermal camera with my photo gear because it is so small, so when I go out I have it at hand.

Topdon have made a top piece of kit with this camera The TC001 comes in a smart little padded hard case to keep the camera protected. The product is a good weight and feels very well made. As a heating engineer this camera is a great tool. As you can see from the video, the property i was at, some pipes were surface mounted and others were under a wooden floor. The camera had the sensitivity to show where the pipes were running under the floor, a very useful thing if you didn't install the pipework and need to know the pipework route. Alternatively if you had a leak or blockage then no doubt this would save you a large headache trying to locate it. As you can also see in the video, you can set up multiple areas to be monitored, for myself I am looking forward to being able to go round and check the radiators for sludge with this camera, as showing the customer a thermal image will help them to understand the health of their heating system. You can choose different colour schemes and a few other useful features like the ability to record over a period of time, set the temperature ranges and you can even take pictures and videos in the app and export them. Overall very happy with this product and should be something every heating engineer adds to his toolbox

I bought this product for a few reasons. Measuring heat loss in the home. Checking my pipes and radiators both in the home and on vehicles at work. The item comes in a nice little zip up protective case, the camera wouldn't plug directly into my phone as it has a chunky case fitted, but don't worry. A cable is provided which is USB c to USB c allowing the camera to connect. (Also allows USB pc connection) The installation process is simple and the app packed full of features. You can choose a variety of colour combinations to suit Temperatures cam be measured and a specific target area can be selected on screen. Minimum maximum mean etc. Another neat feature is the ability to record over a period of time or save and export a picture. Overall a nice handy piece of kit which works seamlessly with an android smartphone. Would definitely recommend.

I bought this a year ago to diagnose heat loss issues in our house built in 1860. The higher resolution compared to the FLIR cameras helped and I saw heat was being lost in places I didn't expect - it's not just the door or windows, it was also in the gaps between the wooden floor. As well as the void under the kitchen units (there was a massive hole into the wall cavity) plus many others. Since then it's been borrowed by everybody - they use it for the same reasons, but also when walking the dog in the dark to find out where they've gone to the toilet. The lack of a battery is a bonus. It means the thing won't die in a few years with no way to buy a spare one. It is annoying to have it on the bottom of the phone where your hand naturally gets in the way, but just get a cheap USB-C to USB-C cable and you can have both in different hands. The app on Android is... not great. It works, but needs better integrations into Google Photos or wherever. Accuracy seems very good indeed. Highly recommended.

The infra red imaging seems good. Can certainly determine cold spots in house through draughts and missing insulation. The software seems ok, but my major gripe is that the indicated temperatures are always at least 3 to 4 degrees lower than actual. Even when modifying the emissivity and ambient temperature values full range, taking readings of matt black objects in dark rooms I cannot match the temperatures of a conventional (£150) surface contact thermometer I have. This is not a complete deal breaker but pretty disappointing. It detracts from the cameras usefulness. The specifications state +/- 2deg C so I am considering returning for either an in spec item or refund. EDIT: When the seller became aware of the above issue,they offered a repacement unit, which I accepted gladly. The replacement was in specification. In fairness the main use of the machine is not to obtain absoluely accurate readings, but to determine temperature differences, such as missing insulation, location of central heating pipes, and balancing radiators. However being more accurate is no disadvantage. Not an inexpensive item, but if you can afford it, its a good product. AND a top seller!

Bought this yesterday, it arrived today. It is awesome and will likely pay for itself in no time. First, the bad point: the software is awful. Just brutally bad. It has settings for colour modes, contrast, point settings and things, but it forgets them and resets to defaults if you leave the app for a second (say to respond to a notification or something), or worse, if you just rotate the device. Seriously, rotating (even just by accident because you're moving around to get a good angle on something), and it resets all your settings. Hopefully the software will improve. The camera itself is great. Feels well built (granted I've only had it for a few hours now, so it may still fall apart). It seems sensitive enough for home/DIY use. I can walk across a wood floor in socks, turn around and see my foot prints, including individual toes, as heat marks on the wood. It even picks up a change in temperature when I walked across a concrete patio in the rain, with flip flops. One of the main reasons I picked this up, was to check insulation in my ceilings and walls. The camera instantly proves that the electrician I hired to install some pot lights, messed up the insulation in the ceiling. I also used it to check my electrical panel. I can instantly see any circuits that are drawing a lot of power. Or, in my case, I can see that the load appears to be low on most. The only circuits that appear to be hotter than the others are the AFCI breakers, and they are expected to be hotter. I had been thinking of buying the FLIR phone camera but ultimately choose this Topdon one for the following reasons: a) no internal battery! I've seen some people list this as a con, but it was the ultimate pro for me. Over the last 10 years, nearly every device I've had die, has died because of the internal, non-replaceable lithium battery. They always expand and burst out of the device, cracking the screen or casing. i've had laptops, phones (Samsung, Google, Apple), iPads, Apple Watches, and even just external battery packs, all swell and burst, destroying expense gear. With no internal battery in this, I expect it will easily last 5-10 years being used as infrequently as one would expect for a home user. b) while the software isn't great yet, at least you own the photos you capture with it. With the FLIR's it seems they add their logo watermark to every image, without an option to turn it off. Based on someone else's review, FLIR stated the logo is there because they claim copyright on the images generated. No thanks. c) price. This camera has a higher resolution than the FLIR, for less $. So far, pretty happy with it. The cost seems reasonable ($399 - $50 coupon when I purchased) and should earn it's cost back in time and energy savings. Since I can see exactly which walls (or sections of walls) I need to open up to fix insulation, I will only have to repair the problem spots.

Very good product

Was well packed and in original sealed box. Working. Have to use more before expanding the review

It's really a good little thermal camera for the price. The thermals are good, the temperature seems accurate, the build quality is good. If you need an inexpensive thermal camera this is it. The good: It has a nice quality little case that comes with it, similar to a small hard drive case. Very protective. The build quality is good. It comes with an extension cord that's around 9" long (which you will need if you have a phone case that prevents the camera from seating all the way into the USB port). The image quality is good, and it seems accurate. The bad: It doesn't overlay a real camera image with the thermal image. That's a much more high end feature. The USB port length is not adjustable, so if your phone has a case on it that blocks the body of the thermal camera from getting close enough to the body of the actual phone, then the USB port won't plug in deep enough to work. That's why you get the short USB extension cord. The cord also keeps your camera easy to move around with your other hand. It's amazing what you can do with a thermal camera. You can look at your walls, windows and ceilings to see where cold air is leaking into your house. You can check for overheating electrical components. You can see if certain parts of an electronics board are failed and heated up (for PCM and motherboard repair, etc). On cars, you can look a cold car over in the morning and see if there are any warm spots. Warm spots indicate that some piece of electronics is running when it shouldn't be, causing a parasitic draw. You can spot bad bearings in a spinning pulley that are beginning to heat up. You can see if your brakes work evenly on both sides of the car, or if you have a bad wheel bearing. You can see if coolant is flowing properly thru a radiator, or if a thermostat is open and flowing water. It's really good for automotive diagnostics. If you are looking for a budget thermal camera, this is it!

Amazing thermal camera 👍