Atomic Wrist Computer ???

[Oldbear]

Cobalt is definately awesome - arrived as scheduled a couple of hours ago, and I have had a play. Very easy to understand the menus and the display is just fantastic. I have been using a Suunto D9tx (wrist mounted) for the last few months and I absolutley love it, but it is just too dark and small for me to read easily with my ageing eyes - I bought a prescription mask and that just made it worse (can now see where I am but not very close up, and my wrist is just too close to read small numbers), I can see to dive now but not to easily read the LCD on the Suunto - oh that I could have had an extended test before I bought one. The Cobalt is slightly smaller than I expected but very easy to read for me, and I guess that a similar display and screen on a wrist will be perfect, but I am not buying another one anytime soon. - P

Ditto - Cobalt is awesome :laughing:, very easy to understand :yelclap:, display is fantastic, age is trying to kick my butt too when it comes to seeing things:lurk2:.

 

[Phil_C]

I've now had the chance to dive with the Cobalt. Made two dives yesterday, both at 70 foot, 40 mins and 50 mins (10 and 15 minutes at 70 foot each time then ascended to a shelf at about 25 foot). Typical cold UK winter water and reasonably poor light levels and visibility. 6 degrees water temp.

The Cobalt lived up to the hype, I could read it through the prescription part of my mask without any difficulty at all, and the display was very bright and easy to see. In contrast I also took my Suunto D9tx and used it in gauge mode and couldn't read it through the prescription part of my mask and had to look hard and turn the light on to see the display through the 'clear' bottom portion of my mask.

I was wearing 5mm gloves during the dives and the buttons on the Cobalt were still very easy to use. Because of my dive profile I didn't need to follow the safety stops etc. so I can't yet comment on how easy and intuitive that works or not, but first impressions are excellent.

My new configuration will be Cobalt as the main dive computer and planner and the Suunto for a backup depth gauge and dive timer. I'll probably swop the air integrated sensor to my pony and lose the backup SPG and gauges on that.

Connected the Cobalt to my computer to download the dive profiles, again very easy, downloaded Atomics software, and then the patch to make it work with Diving Log 5 which I use and once I'd figured out you need to manually tell the Cobalt to connect I had no dificulty downloading the dives to either program (Diving Log or Atomics).

I am very impressed and happy with it, for me this works perfectly as a console (never thought I would say that as I was a dyed in the wool wrist mount until now). Happy diving - P

 

[Zesty]

I have had my Cobalt for the first season, and I have a Galileo SOL and I am always torn between the two. My Cobalt is so easy to read and intutive, but you can't switch between tanks / gasses in the middle of a dive. My Galileo is wireless, so it helps streamline me, and I can use multiple transmitters to switch between different tanks. HOWEVER - it has lousy backlighting and is very difficult to read in dim conditions (dive the Great Lakes enough and these become the normal conditions). I'm taking both to the Turks in 6 days to see how they hold up in SW side by side. One revalation is that I do not like either's electronic compass - I will just use my trusty wrist mounted compass.

If Atomic came out with a wrist mounted version with the same positive aspects of my Galileo, with the same easy-to-read screen, I would certainly be interested!

 

[Scott L]

I have had my Cobalt for the first season, and I have a Galileo SOL and I am always torn between the two. My Cobalt is so easy to read and intutive, but you can't switch between tanks / gasses in the middle of a dive. My Galileo is wireless, so it helps streamline me, and I can use multiple transmitters to switch between different tanks. HOWEVER - it has lousy backlighting and is very difficult to read in dim conditions (dive the Great Lakes enough and these become the normal conditions). I'm taking both to the Turks in 6 days to see how they hold up in SW side by side. One revalation is that I do not like either's electronic compass - I will just use my trusty wrist mounted compass.

If Atomic came out with a wrist mounted version with the same positive aspects of my Galileo, with the same easy-to-read screen, I would certainly be interested!

Liquidvision...

 

[Dr. Lecter]

My Cobalt is so easy to read and intutive, but you can't switch between tanks / gasses in the middle of a dive.

You mean you can't switch for PSI and air time remaining calcs, right? Easy gas switching during dives between 3 simple to program mixes is one of the things I like about my Cobalt.

I can't imagine bothering with buying and maintaining batteries in three AI sender units (especially the $400+ ones used w/ the Liquidvision Lynx...) on three regs, especially given how cheap, reliable, and compact the SPG hoses are on stage bottles already.

 

[Zesty]

You mean you can't switch for PSI and air time remaining calcs, right?.

You are correct

 

[Zesty]

Liquidvision...

Nice!

 

[RonR]

Glad everyone seems to like the Cobalt- we (we're the original developers) have worked hard to make it easy to use.
Just to fill in some information, there is definitely a wrist mount in the works, but as with Atomic's other products and philosophy, the emphasis is on getting it right, rather than getting it out quickly.


Atomic was indeed purchased last fall, link to the story here: DiveNewswire . This means they are now part of a larger group of innovative companies, each a top contender in their category. Nothing has changed in the day to day, except that they now have more resources to help develop new products. It's a good thing.


Just to be clear, the Cobalt console does allow gas switching during a dive for deco calculations, but since it is on a hose, it can only calculate the gas time remaining and display pressure for a single tank. When you switch to a secondary mix, those figures are grayed out. You do have to set the Cobalt up to enable gas switching prior to the dive. Cobalt Guide: Dive Screen: Multi-Gas Diving

Ron