[angry_octet]

Can anyone explain why I would get a FLIR Lepton system (America) vs an InfiRay P2 (China) system? The InfiRay seems to have much better performance for the price, and sturdier construction. But software? As much fun as DIY is, I want something with a UVC interface I can plug into a Linux machine.

[coolhand2120]

I purchased an InfiRay P2 and it started failing the day after I purchased it. Had to return it. I suspect the seller just resold the defective unit over and over. Nice device if you can find a working one.

[angry_octet]

Was that from eBay/AliExpress etc or a proper retailer? If it was a retailer with a relationship to the manufacturer that indicates poor quality control on production stock. (E.g. I would hope these guys are okay: https://www.pergear.com/products/infiray-p2-pro )

[joshvm]

If you want a UVC setup then the purethermal carrier is the route to go.

You buy FLIR because they're well made, reliable products. Same reason people spend the money on Fluke. I'm not sure you can necessarily say the support is better for consumers because they mostly cater to OEMs, but the camera cores are (mostly) very well documented and software support is good.

[giantg2]

"the camera cores are (mostly) very well documented and software support is good."

I have seen some good documents, but they are mostly tailored to OEMs as well. It also depends on what you want to do. I've been trying to get a lepton streaming video to a TFT screen using an ESP32. Resources are scares. If you hit a problem, you're basically on your own.

[joshvm]

Hmm from my experience the Software IDD is pretty good, but ultimately it's not designed as a consumer part. (I am the author of flirpy which is aimed at more end user applications but I've not added low level support for the Lepton yet)

[klondike_]

FLIR systems are limited in resolution and frame rate because of ITAR restrictions, even though they're the industry leader. Chinese systems have improved a lot in recent years and are not subject to ITAR and can offer higher resolutions and framerates

[giantg2]

FLIR offers higher resolution and higher framerate options too. For that, they want you to buy a Boson or higher. They even make Leptons with 25fps capability. The firmware for the standard Lepton simply reads every third frame.

[angry_octet]

Makes me wonder how hard it would be to flash a different firmware.

For other people's benefit, from the FLIR website:

In general, thermal cameras operating at 60 fps and/or 30 fps (NTSC) or 50 / 25 fps (PAL) video rates are export-controlled by the U.S. government.

The FLIR OEM camera modules - including Tau2 640 (both 60 and 30 fps), Tau2 336 — are classified as dual-use items and require export licenses from the U.S. Department of Commerce.

The FLIR Vue and Vue Pro (640 and 336) are also dual-use.

Boson 640 (60/30 fps) and Boson 320, are controlled to the ITAR, and require export licenses from the U.S. Department of State prior to delivery outside of the U.S. or Canada.

The U.S. government allows thermal cameras with frame rates less that 9 fps to be exported without a license. This is why FLIR offers thermal cameras with "fast video" and "slow video" options.

[giantg2]

My understanding is the firmware is on some non-writeable chip.