atom vs epic vs d6 vs d9

i have 16 logged dives under my belt, so to say i'm a newbie is an understatement.

i'm starting to accumulate my own gear, and want some feedback on the computers.

the plan is to stick with air and nitrox for a while, then get deeper into the tech side of things, but that'll probably be a few years out.

i would like a wrist computer that i can wear topside too while not diving, so my choices (from what i gather) are the d6, d9, atom and epic.

can anyone tell me what the major differences between these computers? i know the suuntos have the digital compass. aeries have user changable batteries. in terms of functionality, is there something one does that the other doesn't do?

thanks in advance for any guidance.

If you plan to go into tech diving in the future, I would recommend the Suunto D6 (if we are only choosing from the "watch-size" selection - I would actually recommend a computer/bottom timer with a large display). The D6 is the only one without a transmitter capability (not needed and sometimes frowned upon for technical diving) and has a very nice gauge mode with stop watch/timer reset function in seconds increments and "bookmark" function (definitely very nice to have for technical diving).

The Atom 2.0 and Aeris Epic are basically the same computer made by the same company - both have the capability of using up to three wireless transmitters. The Suunto D9 can use one transmitter and the D6 cannot be used with a transmitter. I also think the Suunto integrated digital compass is rather pointless...

The Suuntos utilizes a "Suunto RGBM" (with deep stop) algorithm (NOT "true" RGBM), whereas the Oceanic/Aeris utilizes a modified Haldanean algorithm.

Imho, Atom/Epic has way too many functions and a very basic gauge mode. The D9 is seriously overpriced.

From reading this board, the D9 and Atom have many features that a new diver will probably not need for a long time.

What kind of diving are you planning for the future?
What's your budget?

Do a search on the board on each individual computer and you'll see many happy people and some people with bad experiences, confusing?....

I've read but unsure of my understanding that wireless underwater is not very reliable in wrecks and caves, are you planning penetration/cave diving in the future? are you going to use the computer for that or tables?

I don't think those computers were designed for decompression diving (although they do support decompression diving in a basic way), also if you plan deep diving in my opinion you won't use air/nitrox for that but trimix, then again for trimix you'll need a trimix/heliox computer which is on a completely different level and does not offer AI.
(at least the ones I know of - VR3 and Nitek HE)
Another thing to consider is that you will be able to dive trimix at least after 100 dives (at least that the requirement from IANTD), how many dives a year are you planning?

There are so many things to consider its almost impossible to answer your question, in my opinion, each one of these computers will give you more than you need as a newbie.

Fish Baller,

Atom, Epic, D6 and D9 are good computers. Another computer you should look at is the Mares Nemo. Not only is it an awesome computer it is a very stylish watch. Italian design all the way. The computer has 4 modes, (air, nitrox, gauge/btimer, freedive), salt, fresh water, metric, imperial, altitude, personal preference settings, 50 logged dives, backlight, chronograph, plus all of the features a normal watch should have. This watch is not air integrated so if that is a priority then you need to look at the others. If this is not a must, for the value it will be hard to do better.

Stainless Steel $425 and Titanium $550 MSRP's.http://http://www.mares.com/product_detail.php?id=79&region=USA

Yes, the Nemo is stylish looking, but also make sure you look at everything you are getting and get what fits what you want. The Nemo is not air integrated, while the Atom is, and the Nemo does not include the download software and cable... about another 100+ dollars, while it comes with the Atom.

Also keep in mind, they have very different algorithms from each other. The Atom is more liberal (although you can change settings to shorten you bottom time if you wish) and the Nemo will be on the very conservative side.

Nothing I listed here is either good or bad... just different, but it's important you understand the differences and get something that fits your needs.