This tiny accessory turns your phone into a full-fledged thermal camera

If you've been looking at Google Pixel 8 Pro's new temperature sensor function and want to get in on the thermal fun, you don't need to buy a new phone. Whether you have an iPhone or one of the best Android phones, you can attach the InfiRay Xinfrared P2 Pro (the world's smallest thermal imager) and start shooting in seconds. 

Capable of both thermal video and photos, all you need to do is download the P2 Pro app and then plug the camera in the USB-C or lightning connector port of your phone (there is a separate model for Android and iPhone, although of course iPhone 15 is now USB-C too). Face the camera towards yourself for a funky thermal selfie, or rear-facing to take the temperature of the world around you. 

It's quite a lot of fun to just take pictures of friends, especially those with glasses, but there are more practical uses of course. Hiking at night, for example, it could be a great way to stay closer together or a useful search and rescue tool. The P2 Pro even comes with an attachable macro lens to inspect things on a much smaller scale. 

We've had a good time with the P2 Pro but it is hard to imagine ordinary users getting too much serious use out of it. The option to get a temperature scale with exact temperatures seems like it could be useful for measuring people's health but with a two-degree (celsius) margin of accuracy, it's not reliable enough. Admittedly two degrees becomes less of an issue at the camera's impressive 550 degree maximum heat detection. 

Resolution-wise, don't expect much either, 256 x 192 isn't much to shout about, so don't expect too much detail in your shots. With a $300 price tag on InfiRay's own site, it is a bit too expensive to recommend as a fun Predator Vision simulator.

Having said that, if you have a use for a thermal camera, it might even be able to pay for itself this winter with the ability to spot things like heat wastage. But as a renter, I personally love using it for hide and seek.