Divesoft Freedom Trimix: Cheaper and better than Perdix?

[tbone1004]

@stuartv look at the pictures he posted. While the Freedom is technically thinner than the Perdix, because it isn't recessed to contour to your arm it actually sticks out farther and has a larger profile on your arm. I've seen them on CCR divers and it feels as big as a Petrel if not bigger

 

[stuartv]

@stuartv look at the pictures he posted. While the Freedom is technically thinner than the Perdix, because it isn't recessed to contour to your arm it actually sticks out farther and has a larger profile on your arm. I've seen them on CCR divers and it feels as big as a Petrel if not bigger

Yep. I did notice that. A brick! But, what LJS said about the battery life is the REAL killer. I found a line in the user manual that mentions 10 hour capacity. I guess that must mean 10 hours of dive time battery life. Definitely way too short.

 

[tbone1004]

hard to pack that many features into that small of a package.... 10 hours of dive time is sufficient just means you have to charge it every night. Petrel has about double that on a NiMH battery with the screen on high and I just change my NiMH batteries every other night when cave diving and about once every 4-5 days when teaching

 

[stuartv]

hard to pack that many features into that small of a package.... 10 hours of dive time is sufficient just means you have to charge it every night. Petrel has about double that on a NiMH battery with the screen on high and I just change my NiMH batteries every other night when cave diving and about once every 4-5 days when teaching

I think the problem is what LJS alluded to. No battery maintains its capacity forever. If it's 10 hours when new, then it might only be 8 hours in 6 months to a year. 5 hours after 2 years. I think it needs to start with at least double the capacity you want, so that it still has the actual capacity you want after 2 years. That is, of course, just personal preference. But, I want to have enough capacity to do 2 normal (but full) days of diving in a row without having to charge. That allows me adequate margin if I forget to charge it one night. Having 2 days capacity, after 2 years, means it needs to start somewhere around 4 days of capacity when new. At least, that's what I would want. My H3 is rated for 15 hours, I think, and it is fine, but I would not want it to be any less. I normally charge it after every 2 or 3 days in a row of diving. But it's still relatively new.

And obviously, how many hours there are in a "normal full day of diving" TOTALLY depends on the diver and the dives they do. I figure very roughly that 3 hours a day (average) would cover me for multiple days in a row. Often it will be less. But sometimes it could be more.

 

[fnog]

I never touched one, but I can say that the frogs are globally satisfied with this computer both in OC and CC
Forums plongée Plongeur.com - Divesoft Freedom

No mention of erroneous inputs or battery life issues. They like the readability, the vibrating alarm can be felt through the suit. The overall comments are "no comments" , "it just does the job". There seems to be very frequent firmware updates, though.

 

[TONY CHANEY]

Very good points posted. FWIW, I have had 3 Oceanic computers, 2 VR3's 1 NHeO, 1Divesoft and 1 Liquivision Xeo. Hands down the Oceanic computer are simply the best for rec. diving but nothing even comes close to the Divesoft Freedom. Some of the features I really like:
Full color display
Aluminum body
fully opened out of the box
With the new kit you can use the computer for an analyzer
Vibrating alarms as well as visual
Small
can bungee mount
With a lot of computers...too much info on the scree! But, during the dive just press the top button once and it decreases the amount of info. Press it again and it decreases it amount of info even more.
Easy to change from left / right hand display.
Buttons are so simple to press in even the thickness gloves or the coldest of hands.

So far what I do not like is:
If I put it on backwards my dry suit zip seal rings do hit the buttons.
No compass but not a deal breaker....just nice to have
No user replaced battery.
Takes a little learning for the first set up with the zeroing out and tilting to raise or lower numbers. After that...a piece of cake.

So the Xeo is either on my wrist or mounted to the DPV. If the Xeo is on the DPV then the NHeO2 is on one wrist and the Freedom is on the other wrist. The Freedom is always with me on the dive and my go to computer. All the Oceanic computers have since died as well as the VR3's. They have served me well over the years but it is what it is.

 

[Long-John-Silver]

It depends on your diving habits. On some weekend I exceed 8 hours of runtime and it's too much hassle to me to remember to charge another piece of gear. I have to remeber already my camera, diving lights... And even if I forget to charge a petrel or perdix I could always use a new battery.
Right now I'm using an old uwatec bottom timer and a suunto viper in my pocket for dive logging. Charging a diving computer it something aline to me. I had the Black BT and I was saved by my Uwatec BT several time.

Lucky you! You never forget to charge your computer.

 

[dmaziuk]

Lucky you! You never forget to charge your computer.

I think non-user-replaceable battery is a show-stopper myself. It's not just that you forget, it's that even "fast" chargers tend to take longer than your SI (and what they really do fast is kill the battery). If you need 24 hours of charge time to 8 hours of runtime, you have to move to a planet with 32-hour days because on this one it just doesn't compute.

 

[stuartv]

The Divesoft does seem like it doesn't have enough battery capacity to satisfy me. But, I have to point out that most devices with Li-Ion rechargeables seem to charge to, say, 80% much more quickly than they pack in that last 20%. So, I would think most computers with built-in rechargeables would probably charge enough to last a whole day's diving in 15-30 minutes. It wouldn't be full, but even 30% would probably cover most normal days of diving. Not the ideal situation, but probably workable to avoid missing any dives. Assuming you have a charger and power source on the boat or wherever you are.

 

[DevonDiver]

If you need 24 hours of charge time to 8 hours of runtime, you have to move to a planet with 32-hour days because on this one it just doesn't compute.

Most manufacturers using rechargeable Li-Ion quote battery life (in dive and standby) plus battery charging time. Normally a full charge is listed around 4-5 hours...

Divesoft list a 5 hour charge cycle, but are a noteable exception in not specifying battery life in their product literature.

See some other examples here: The Best Technical Diving Computers 2016