What are your feelings about an underwater navigational device?
Great 5/5 (5=excellent, 1=I don't care)
What do you find most difficult about underwater navigation?
Low vis situations. For the purposes of my definition, let's say that 30 feet is adequate vis, less than 30 is low, and 5 feet sucks.
How long have you been diving, and how has your answer to the last question changed as you’ve become more experienced?
Two years. As I have progressed in training, low (or zero) vis bothers me less and less. Nevertheless, low vis navigation (typically with a compass) is an issue that we are trained to cope with, but a GPS-like device would certainly help.
When looking for a specific feature at a dive site (cave, wreck, etc…
how often do you have difficulty find it? If you’ve had difficulties with this, would your rather have a map to look at, or a simple arrow telling you the distance, direction, and depth to the feature?
Most of the sites I dive have buoys and descent lines. Not an issue.
Have you ever used any devices (other than a compass) for underwater navigation, and if so, what were your experiences with them?
Compass only. Works well, and power consumption is minimal
. Tough to use where vis is less than 10 feet, though.
How often have you been separated from your dive partner? Of those times, how many times have you easily found them, and how many took longer than you would have liked?
Yes. Less than 25% (low vis). Took longer than I would have liked (including meeting at the surface) = 100-25=75%.
What would be your biggest reason for purchasing a navigation device (safety, better dives, comfort, etc…
?
Safety (keeping up with dive buddy AND having the dive boat know where I am).
Do you use a dive computer? If so, what type do you use, how much did it cost, and what made you purchase your particular model?
Yes. Sherwood Wisdom 2 and Sherwood Insight (at the same time). About $600 and $400. Reason for purchase - pricepoint and air-integrated computer (Wisdom 2) and large display (low vis).
How often do you replace your computer, and what will you be looking for in your next one that your current model lacks?
Compatibility with existing computer(s), i.e., same NDL algorithm, large display (for low vis), possibly mask-integrated heads-up (low vis).
If your next purchase of computer had an option for a practical navigational aid, how strongly would you consider the following features? Please rate from 1= Unnecessary to 5=Important, and add any comments you feel are necessary.
Distance and direction to boat (or dive starting location):
My being aware of distance to boat = 1. Boat being aware of distance to me if sh!+ happens, especially in high waves = 5.
Distance and direction to dive partner (or other divers):
4 (or 5). I guess that this means that we BOTH have to purchase the same unit, which might be a deterrent (in the sense that, if the exact same unit must be purchased by both divers, you are really restricting you clientele), esp. for divers who travel a lot without their significant others.
Waypoints for dive features (caves, wrecks, etc…
:
2
2
A recorded path of your dive (including air usage and swim speed):
1 (but if you can do this at little additional cost to you, I am sure that lots of people would love it).
Some facts about you:
Geographic location (state or country):
Do you prefer boat dives or beach dives:
Favorite dive spot:
My comment - If you can come up something which has the functionality of a computer (ca. $500) and a GPS (ca. $300) and a global rescue beacon (ca. $400) that alerts most/all maritime rescue systems, and you can package all three "in one" for about $800, and if you can ensure that your competitors (who will quickly follow suit) will use a compatible frequency range so that my dive buddy can use the Oceanic version while I use the Suunto version AND we can both see each other underwater on you "GPS," then, my friend, I will be buying two.
