Are Suunto dive computers so conservative, they're useless?

[mrjimboalaska]

Ahhhh.....I love my Suunto Mosquito.....that said, You will find in life that when you are young you are quite liberal, but as you get older, the conservative light will shine!

 

[AJ Tudor]

Vyper solved all issues, works great, DSS mount is awesome, big numbers so it's easy to see.

Not to mention how simple they are to use.

 

[miketsp]

Before I switched to my Vyper my wife used to complain occasionally about what appeared to be mild skin bends, rash & itching post-dive.
In the last 150 dives using the Vyper she has never again had anything similar.
The previous computer was more aggressive but I'm convinced that the Vyper algorithm is safer. By trial and error I adjusted the older one so it gives very similar results to the Vyper. This needed a +40% conservative setting.

 

[leadweight]

Actually, the Mares computers are even more conservative than Suunto. Computers made by Seiko (Diverite, including the watch size model mentioned above, Apeks Quantum and Tusa IQ700) are only slightly less conservative. Aladin computers can be more or less conservative, depending on how you are diving, and an Aladin on the first microbubble level is more conservative than a Suunto at default.

The D6, D9 and Vytec all have RGBM50, which make them slightly less conservative.

The only popular brand of dive computer that is really less conservative than the rest of the pack is Oceanic/Aeris. These have a reputation for requiring very long stops once no stop limits have been exceeded. There are some others out there like Cochran or Buddy, but there are not many of them around.

I returned form Utila this week and observed that nearly every instructor down there was using a Suunto computer, mostly Stingers. One guy had a Scubapro Extender, made by Seiko.

You can always develop a few multi level profiles with something like V-Planner or the Wheel and dive with a G-Shock and depth gauge. Several of the newly trained instructors sere doing that as they had no money to buy gear. By the end of the trip so was I, as my Aladin had quit working.

 

[Bbarnes]

I dive with a Cobra Suunto and love it. I am a conservative type anyway. I love that I can go back and review so many dives in my 'logbook' that I have neglected to actually write down. However, it is sometimes rather frustrating as my 2 dive buddies dive with an Aeris AE1 and Atomos Elite. I am usually signalling them that I am a couple of minutes from deco and they are still 10+ minutes away. Luckily they bow to my computer and we start moving up. I will stay that I have only had one problem with my computer in 140+ dives (It continued to read that I was at 1ft even back in the hotel room etc) and my husband's elite has been repaired repeatedly.

 

[KrisB]

Just a quick note...

Some people were suggesting that "conservative" and "safe" are synonyms. They are not.

Suuntos are definitely more conservative (they make you go up sooner than some others). The real question is whether that makes them safer.

Personally, having researched the options, I ended up with a Suunto Cobra. What a glorious computer! I have no problem with the conservativism -- basically, if you do square dives, you're dead on with the DSAT tables for NDL.

Since no dive is perfectly square (you don't drop like a rock, nor ascend like a rocket), any dive computer (even Suunto's) will extend your bottom time over the tables. Not only that, but they will help your repetitive dives.

Which brings me to the difference between Suunto and others (as I understand it) -- Suunto's conservativism is really noticed when you're on dive 2, 3, or 4 of a series.

 

[Charlie59]

Most people run out of air before their computer runs out of bottom time. Unless diving 6 dives a day for a week (you lucky duck) you probably would not notice much difference with a Suunto.

When diving with people with different computers it is rare to see one brand as the "last longer" computer. As you can see by the number of people who dive Suunto,
few find it worthless.

As I recall I paid alot for mine.

 

[Charlie99]

Most people run out of air before their computer runs out of bottom time. Unless diving 6 dives a day for a week (you lucky duck) you probably would not notice much difference with a Suunto.

While this is true for shallow dives, at 80' and deeper it doesn't take a phenomenal air consumption to hit NDL before air limit, even on the first dive and using an AL80. Even with a fairly common SAC of 0.65cfm, and an ascent pressure of 1000psi on an AL80, you will hit the 20 minute NDL at 100'. Or 0.6cfm and 80' -- 1st dive, on air, AL80.
Start figuing in a 2nd dive, particularly after a multilevel profile and NDL quickly becomes an issue for even novices that are hoovering away.

When diving with people with different computers it is rare to see one brand as the "last longer" computer.

There have been multiple articles and studies that come to a different conclusion. Personally, I have done many dives where someone with a Suunto has a required deco obligation while my computer is still showing some remaining time left. (I typically do ascent the gets my N2 bargraph back pretty close to green, this usually clears the Suunto deco obligation also).

As you can see by the number of people who dive Suunto,
few find it worthless.

Agreed. Nice conservative computer. Just be ready to do the deco time if diving agressively.

My only compaint about them is, that on the Suunto computers that I've looked at, the bargraph is just a graphical representation of the NDL time rather than an indicator of compartment loading. The problem is that NDL goes up dramatically when going to safety stop level, so the Suunto bargraph immediately goes back into the green. Computers where the bargraph indicates compartment loading, will only slowly go back into the green as the compartments offgass.

 

[Charlie59]

Personally, I believe that if you need to push the limits of a Suunto to do deep diving you may want to consider Tech diving. Again, I would think that if you looked at comparisons the differences in bottom times is trivial. Looking at doppler bubble info it is sometimes creepy to think of using much but a conservative computer for no deco dives in the 80 to 120 fsw range.

Push on brother, each diver to his own.

 

[THellURider]

I just got a D9 with transmitter 2 days before I left for Spain a month ago. I'm still here so I haven't gotten to play with it much but from what I could tell you could make it less conservative than the standard setting.

I'm I just dreaming here?