HIGH TECH DAVEDOUGLAS C UTTINGEDGEWIDGETS—ANDOTHERNEWSTUFF. his isn’t the first appearance of a FLIR product in this column, and if they keep producing this level of highquality, high-tech products, it won’t be the last. When it comes to thermal imagers (thermal cameras), FLIR is the big dog on the porch. But in the world of high-tech electronics, just being the big dog doesn’t necessarily mean the best. However, you’d have your work cut out for you trying to find a better group of products than what FLIR provides law enforcement, military and the commercial markets. It’s a product that’ll help keep you safe, put bad guys in jail and round out any surveillance equipment inventory. And, it does so at a reasonably low cost. T Handheld Affordable Thermal Imager Embrace your inner pirate: FLIR’s LS-Series thermal imagers are modern-day telescopes. LS32/64 T Bad guys love to play hide-n-seek, but with an LS32 or LS64 the odds are stacked in your favor. he LS32 and LS64 join the handheld H-Series with law enforcers in mind. The new LS-Series thermal imagers are about half the size of the H-Series and have an easyto-use design. They even include a laser pointer. Buttons for power, polarity, zoom, LCD brightness and laser activation sit atop the unit, are easily accessible and easy to use. The sealed eyepiece includes a diopter adjustment. Both LS32 and LS64 use FLIR’s latest thermal cores. The LS32 is a great tool for patrol, while the slightly more expensive LS64 offers longer standoff capability, is ideal for special tactics, critical infrastructure protection, protective service and high-threat security situations. Both operate on an embedded Li-Ion battery, providing up to 5 hours of run time. ry as they might (and often they will), suspects can’t hide their heat signatures. So rather than give away your position by trying to blast them with your tactical illumination tool (flashlight for us old guys) you can gain the tactical advantage by having the ability to see in pitch-black conditions even where traditional night vision fails like tunnels, mineshafts and fully enclosed warehouses. The FLIR LS is just as portable as your light and much more effective. You can even see through smoke, dust and light fog. Light foliage and camouflage are powerless against thermal imaging. You can take away every hiding spot with FLIR LS-Series. T = Instalert Instacool ike almost every thermal camera, the LS-Series have black-hot and white-hot palettes for you to select to provide the best viewing in a given situation. But, the Instalert setting is really cool. If you select Instalert, the hottest objects in the scene are highlighted in red to simplify detection of animals, people or objects. There are four preset levels you can select based on the specific scene being viewed. Considering their size, the LS-Series Thermal Imagers are feature rich. They deliver palm-sized portability and weigh in at only 12 ounces. They provide weather-tight, rugged operation with an ergonomic design and multiple resolution choices for increased detection range. They also have up to a 4X digital zoom. L On the left is an image you might see through NVG; you could easily mistake the bright dots as UFOs. Then again, the image on the right is what you can expect to see when using the FLIR LS Series. 16 * For more info: www.americancopmagazine.com/flir-systems WWW.AMERICANCOPMAGAZINE.COM • AUGUST2013
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