I just bought an Aeris Atmos 2 from ScubaToys! I decided to go with the Atmos 2 over the Vyper because of (1) price, (2) less conservative algorithm on the Atmos 2 and (3) battery life and (4) ease of changing the battery myself.
Need Dive Computer Recommendation for My Needs
- Thread starter jc2
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And now Oceanic has made a special incentive so the Atoms are down to 699... pretty sweet.
I want to talk about 2 things that show up in these posts... 1) wrist vs. console and 2) atom does not display pressure on the main screen.
1) wrist vs console:
The way I look at it, I'd rather have all my info in one place. If it made sense to put a compass on one wrist, a computer on the other, a gauge somewhere else... why don't Indy drivers have a tach on one wrist, speedometer on another, oil temp over here, oil pressure in the back seat...
Put all the info in one spot, that way when you look at one thing, if anything else is wrong... you'll see it.
Now if it's AI on the wrist... then all the stuff is there...
So my opinion... and keep in mind - this is personal preference - no one person or group is "Right" when deciding the best way for you to configure the gear how you like it... But my opinion is do a console if not air integrated, and with air integrated... then wrist or console is fine - just so all the data is together.
2) Atom and pressure display.
True, the atom does not show pressure on the front screen. I had someone get one, call me up and read me the riot act on how could I sell him this piece of junk that doesn't even show pressure on the front screen... "I demand a refund!"
So I got talking to him about air pressure. If you are reading this... answer this question... If you are swimming against a 1 knot current at a depth of 93 feet, and you have 1200 psi in your tank, how much longer can you swim before you would have to start a slow ascent if you want to plan for a 3 minute safety stop and still hit the surface with 400 psi?? Anyone??
Now perhaps, if you know your sac rate, and have a calculator handy, you might be able to figure this out... but I don't dive because it gives me lots of chances to do on the fly algebraic calculations... I dive to look at fish.
So my argument is, what does it matter if it shows how much pressure you have? That number is darn near insignificant. The Atom on the main screen shows a much more important number - how much time you have left before you need to start your ascent so you can get to the surface based on the safety parameters you plugged in.
So knowing 7 minutes left - means a lot more to me than 1140psi and doing all the math to determine that is 7 minutes under the present depth and conditions... And if I want to see the pressure - I just hit the button.
It is exactly like the computer in my Car... I got this cool little thing that tells me how long until I run out of gas. This is probably the perfect analogy for air integrated dive computers. If you have a standard computer, it's like just having a gas gauge that is pointing to 1/2 or 1/3 or F. With air integrated, it's like having the computer that says "you have 123 miles until empty". So my cars default display is how long can I go until I run out of gas. Why not show me how many gallons?? Because I don't want to try to concentrate on driving, then calculate what is my present MPG, do some long division and determine when I need to stop and get gas...
It's a lot easier to have the computer do it for me... And that is exactly what the atom does. If you want to know how much air is in the tank... hit the button - it will tell you. But instead of making the display smaller - and keep in mind - it's a watch size computer, to make it small enough to pack all that on there... It's a bit too small for me. Yes, it will be there on the Atmos 2 / Epic... but for me, I prefer the format of the Current Atom
After I explained it to the customer, the thought about it, agreed, and decided he'd rather have the Atom 1 than the Atom 2.
Again... just opinions. With an air integrated computer, I never find myself looking at pressure, but remaining time - so if I want a smaller computer - why not put it on the second screen.
If you want them together, go for the VT Pro, or wait for the new Atoms in about 2 months, but plan on near $1000 instead of under $700... So is that worth $300??
So if you like wrist units... and don't want air integrated... the the Atmos 2 or VT Pro are great units - at a real good price right now. If you want air integrated in a small package - go for the Atom. If you have to have the air pressure on the front screen, do the VT Pro, Aeris Elite, or wait for the Atom 2.
None is better... just different.
I want to talk about 2 things that show up in these posts... 1) wrist vs. console and 2) atom does not display pressure on the main screen.
1) wrist vs console:
The way I look at it, I'd rather have all my info in one place. If it made sense to put a compass on one wrist, a computer on the other, a gauge somewhere else... why don't Indy drivers have a tach on one wrist, speedometer on another, oil temp over here, oil pressure in the back seat...
Put all the info in one spot, that way when you look at one thing, if anything else is wrong... you'll see it.
Now if it's AI on the wrist... then all the stuff is there...
So my opinion... and keep in mind - this is personal preference - no one person or group is "Right" when deciding the best way for you to configure the gear how you like it... But my opinion is do a console if not air integrated, and with air integrated... then wrist or console is fine - just so all the data is together.
2) Atom and pressure display.
True, the atom does not show pressure on the front screen. I had someone get one, call me up and read me the riot act on how could I sell him this piece of junk that doesn't even show pressure on the front screen... "I demand a refund!"
So I got talking to him about air pressure. If you are reading this... answer this question... If you are swimming against a 1 knot current at a depth of 93 feet, and you have 1200 psi in your tank, how much longer can you swim before you would have to start a slow ascent if you want to plan for a 3 minute safety stop and still hit the surface with 400 psi?? Anyone??
Now perhaps, if you know your sac rate, and have a calculator handy, you might be able to figure this out... but I don't dive because it gives me lots of chances to do on the fly algebraic calculations... I dive to look at fish.
So my argument is, what does it matter if it shows how much pressure you have? That number is darn near insignificant. The Atom on the main screen shows a much more important number - how much time you have left before you need to start your ascent so you can get to the surface based on the safety parameters you plugged in.
So knowing 7 minutes left - means a lot more to me than 1140psi and doing all the math to determine that is 7 minutes under the present depth and conditions... And if I want to see the pressure - I just hit the button.
It is exactly like the computer in my Car... I got this cool little thing that tells me how long until I run out of gas. This is probably the perfect analogy for air integrated dive computers. If you have a standard computer, it's like just having a gas gauge that is pointing to 1/2 or 1/3 or F. With air integrated, it's like having the computer that says "you have 123 miles until empty". So my cars default display is how long can I go until I run out of gas. Why not show me how many gallons?? Because I don't want to try to concentrate on driving, then calculate what is my present MPG, do some long division and determine when I need to stop and get gas...
It's a lot easier to have the computer do it for me... And that is exactly what the atom does. If you want to know how much air is in the tank... hit the button - it will tell you. But instead of making the display smaller - and keep in mind - it's a watch size computer, to make it small enough to pack all that on there... It's a bit too small for me. Yes, it will be there on the Atmos 2 / Epic... but for me, I prefer the format of the Current Atom
After I explained it to the customer, the thought about it, agreed, and decided he'd rather have the Atom 1 than the Atom 2.
Again... just opinions. With an air integrated computer, I never find myself looking at pressure, but remaining time - so if I want a smaller computer - why not put it on the second screen.
If you want them together, go for the VT Pro, or wait for the new Atoms in about 2 months, but plan on near $1000 instead of under $700... So is that worth $300??
So if you like wrist units... and don't want air integrated... the the Atmos 2 or VT Pro are great units - at a real good price right now. If you want air integrated in a small package - go for the Atom. If you have to have the air pressure on the front screen, do the VT Pro, Aeris Elite, or wait for the Atom 2.
None is better... just different.
Larry, thanks for the input. Your recommendations are virtually exactly what I've concluded after reading as many posts/reviews as I could find.
What does the Atom do when it loses signal from the RPG?
My main concern now is comfort, I'll probably be using the computer with a dry suit only 20% of the time, most of the time I'll be wearing a shorty so it will be mounted on my bare wrist which is only a tad larger than the average woman's wrist. I heard the VT Pro is smaller than the Atmos 2. Do you think any of those would be too big and bulk for my wrist, including the Suunto Vytec? I suppose if I'm going to spend as much as a Vytec cost I might as well just by the Atom.
What does the Atom do when it loses signal from the RPG?
My main concern now is comfort, I'll probably be using the computer with a dry suit only 20% of the time, most of the time I'll be wearing a shorty so it will be mounted on my bare wrist which is only a tad larger than the average woman's wrist. I heard the VT Pro is smaller than the Atmos 2. Do you think any of those would be too big and bulk for my wrist, including the Suunto Vytec? I suppose if I'm going to spend as much as a Vytec cost I might as well just by the Atom.
jc2:
Any time any of the air integrated computers lose their signal, they keep giving nitrogen loading info, and give you an indicator that it's searching for the air signal... as soon as it re-establishes (normally 5 seconds or so) it goes back into air and nitrogen calculations.
The Atom is watch size - and comes with a strap extender for going over a dry suit, take it off and it fits a wrist without a mile of extra strap.
Very good points on the previous posts...I have heard fron both camps regarding hoseless AI and here is my two cents. Hoseless AI is godsend for simplifying your setup but it is, as has been said, quite pricey. That said hoseless AI(henceforth, HAI) is also an option which can be done without and even without it most wrist computers that have this option are still very capable computers. Case in point the Suunto Vytec DS, although I have this computer with its HAI, I do not totally rely on this option for pressure info in fact my kit can still be considered fully redundant; Suunto Vytec DS with HAI, traditional 3-gauge console and a mechanical watch with sweep second hand. So if the batteries decide to take a dump on me while at depth I still have my training and a full array of mechanical gauges and tables to get me through my dive.
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