Which computer is best?

Okay, Recently I find myself having to upgrade my older gear. As I am doing this I considered going to an air integrated computer to replace my Mares Mission surveyor nitrox. (I have had no complaints with this computer) My LDS is telling me in a nutshell that Oceanic computers are the best due to more bottom time. (Of course he sells this brand)

So please someone with more experience enlighten me, is one computer line better than another and if so what makes it so. I thank you in advance.

The best one is the one you own and trust, or in some cases its the one that you can afford and trust. I think "best" is really a difficult assessment to determine. What type of diving do you do? All warm water, less than 60'? I guarantee the answer from a fellow warm water diver would likely be different than that of a cold/dark water diver. A Suunto D9 is never an option where I dive, but some in warm water love them.

If you want the most feature rich, upgradable and one of the most expensive and impressive, Uwatec Galileo Sol. I'm partial to Suunto and Uwatec, but thats because its what I am familiar with. Your LDS is partial to what they can make $ and are hopefully technically competent with.

If you are looking for a new computer, i'd suggest having user replacable batteries as a factor.

"More bottom time" is really a rather poor criterion upon which to judge the quality and suitability of a computer.

keyshunter:

"More bottom time" is really a rather poor criterion upon which to judge the quality and suitability of a computer.

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This is a true comment. Oceanic uses one of the more "liberal" algorithms for computing deco limits. Thus, "more bottom time." Whether that is good or bad depends upon whether you personally need a more liberal or more conservative approach to computing deco limits. This question has both a physiological (how healthy, old, and fit are you) and psychological (how close do you want to get to the envelope) component.

Any diver will tell you what the very best computer is. It's the one they have bought.

Any LDS will tell you what the very best computer is. It's the one they are selling.

Oceanic uses the same exact deco model as the PADI tables, without any additional padding to increase how conservative the computer is. It is, however, very easy to effectively adjust how conservative or liberal the computer is by simply choosing to only dive up to a certain spot on the N2 graph. Or to do a slow enough ascent and long enough hang times to bring the bargraph back to a desired level.

What the Oceanic computers do NOT do is to adjust for bad profiles --- rapid ascents, yo-yo profiles, short SIs, reverse profiles, etc. You are required to account for "misbehavior" like that, as well as other factors such as if you might be dehydrated or for cold water impeding circulation on exposed skin.

On repetitive dives, the Suunto computers will attempt to compensate for misbehavior on prior dives by reducing NDLs. This sometimes results in Suunto computers giving NDLs that don't seem very repeatable, but they are definitely better if you don't pay attention to your profiles and just blindly follow the computer.