Inteliscope + SEEK Thermal = Interesting Combination

Forgive me for starting out a technology review piece this way, but I’m a Trekkie.  I give away my age when I admit that I’ve been a fan since the original series first aired in September of 1966.  I still am a fan.  I am repeatedly amazed by how what was once science fiction has become science fact.  We may not be traveling the stars using warp drive and inertial dampeners, but we do have hand held communicators (cell phones), electronic clipboards (iPads and the like), TASERs instead of Phasers (wires are the biggest noticeable difference) and… the beloved tricorder.  What wouldn’t we give to have a handheld device that could scan our surroundings to find people, tell us if the environment is safe, etc.  Wouldn’t it be all the better if that same device could help us aim our weapon and record our activities all the way up to the shot(s)?

Meet the Inteliscope.  This rail-mount system combined with the free app allows you to mount your cell phone on your rifle.  Silly you say?  Bulky – as compared to some optic systems – but I won’t go so far as to say silly.  By using your cell phone, the Inteliscope system lets you record your mission and your shots, if any, and is capable of being zeroed to your weapon.  It allows for magnification and has multiple options for reticle so you can pick the one you like – or the one most suited for your current mission.  It can use the light built into your phone and can even make it strobe if you see the need.

I found out about this device a year ago.  I was greatly remiss in not writing up the full review on it in a timely fashion.  As it works out, things only got better and now I get to write up another – additional – advantage to the system.  Meet SEEK Thermal.  This small device attaches to your phone – iPhone or Android – and lets your phones camera see thermal.

Yes, you read that right.  A small relatively simple looking device that allows the camera already built into your phone to see thermal images.  For those of you saying, “So what?” I’m going to direct you to the photos that accompany this article.  As a law enforcement veteran who has had to search for criminal suspects in the dark, I already know the value of thermal and/or infra-red imaging.  It used to be a technology that was too expensive for the average patrol officer to have.  It was also a technology that had the ability to reduce our risk during high risk searches in low light environments.  And given that roughly 2/3 of all police shootings happen in low light environments (according to the FBI’s UCR reports), being able to see things beyond the “normal” light spectrum can be a big life saver – literally.

Enter SEEK Thermal.  The CompactPRO that I received for testing measures about 1.75”x1”x.825”. It’s not big by any means.  It plugs into the charging port on my iPhone 6 and fits fairly snug.  After downloading the free app, I was able to set up the CompactPRO pretty quickly and, within five minutes, was using it.  How well does it work?

Once again I’m going to refer you to the photos.  There are three pictures I took with my phone – another advantage to the SEEK Thermal technology; you can take thermal pictures with your phone and preserve potential evidence images – that show a backyard.  There’s a fairly large German Shepherd in that back yard.  In one photo you see nothing but darkness. In the second photo you can just barely see the green reflections off his retinas.  In the third – thermal – photo you can see his large warmer body as compared to the rest of his surroundings.  He’s just sitting there… barking at me.

Still outside I wondered if there was an intelligence or recon value to this technology.  Refer to the photos of two vehicles.  With one you can see the engine area is hot AND you can see the wheels/tires/brakes are hot, at least as compared to what’s around them.  On the other vehicle you can see that the engine area is still warm, but the tires and wheels are not.  It had been parked for about three hours.  The vehicle in the first photo had been parked about thirty minutes.  Can you think of a situation where knowing if a vehicle had recently been driven might be of value?

That started me thinking about indoor applications as well.  While the thermal technology paired with a mounted optics system (did you forget about the Inteliscope system already?) is a great tool for outdoor searches in low light environments, what value might it have inside?  (beyond searching for hidden bad guys?)  I am limited as to the number of photos I can share but I captured one of my pet Husky lying at the foot of the bed in a dark bedroom.  I couldn’t see him with normal vision but the SEEK CompactPRO clearly showed a canine.  In my office I took a look at my office chair and could see that the seat was still hot.  Obviously, I knew I had recently been sitting there, but would such information be valuable in a house search for a suspect?

I could go on. The applications for such a handy, lightweight and easily used thermal imaging device are many.  It’s a technology that used to cost thousands of dollars and was bulky as heck.  Now it’s a nice compact package that I found on Amazon (using a Google search) for $260.66 plus shipping and handling.  On the Inteliscopes website, you can buy the Inteliscope system plus the SEEK CompactPRO together for $447. That’s a far cry from the thousands we used to have to spend for just part of that technology and less than some optics cost by themselves.  Before you scoff at the system or the technology, try it out for yourself.

For more information about SEEK Thermal visit their website at http://www.thermal.com.

For more information about Inteliscopes visit their website at http://www.inteliscopes.com.

Be sure to check out “Beneath The Surface” in this month’s issue of Law Enforcement Technology magazine where using thermal photography to document and investigate injuries is detailed.