Nautilus Lifeline GPS/Marine VHF Contest

[rlskill1]

I Learned About Diving From That - Contest to post Stories, Videos and Pictures of Scuba Diving for a chance to win a Nautilus Lifeline (http://www.ilearnedaboutdivingfromthat.com)

Nautilus Lifeline Diver Radio and GPS (http://www.nautiluslifeline.com)

According to the contest rules, Nautilus Lifeline will give away one of their units every 2 weeks to the winning entry in their "I Learned About Diving From That" essay contest. Submit a story and have your frineds vote on your entry. These units look really sharp.:D

A DEMA attendee said the Nautilus Lifeline was one of his top 3 picks of new gear this year!

[reefduffer]

Could you add physical specs to the website, please? Sorry if it's there, I couldn't find it.

Dimensions HxWxD.
Weight in air, and +/- buoyancy.
A clearer image (and maybe dimensions) of the attachment point.

I realize you won't be shipping these for 4 months or so, but a pdf user's manual, even if preliminary, would be welcome.

And just to make sure you're thinking about it, I see that the USB is intended for PC syncing, gps upload, and maybe advanced configuration. Please don't make this Windows-only. The Mac is approaching 10% US market share, and that 10% is skewed towards the higher-end demographic. Do something to support that, please.
Something browser-based maybe, or at least publish the interface protocol so third-party software can fill the gap.

[rlskill1]

Please contact the company with your questions n concerns. I'm just passing along the message.
Some of the info you want is on the webpage "Nautilus Lifeline".

[reefduffer]

Please contact the company with your questions n concerns. I'm just passing along the message.
Some of the info you want is on the webpage "Nautilus Lifeline".

OK, sorry for my misunderstanding of your role.
I went back and looked at the site again, and I still don't see what part of my query was answered there, but never mind ...

I've emailed them as suggested, and received this very prompt reply. I thought there would be enough interest that I would share it here, although I haven't asked Nautilus' permission, and this is preliminary information it wouldn't be fair to hold them to if it changes before shipping. Imperial conversions in [] are my addition.

Hi Reefduffer,

Thank you for getting in touch with us. Please find attached the Nautilus Lifeline Tech Specs. We will be posting them on the website shortly. Thank you for your your recommendation to put a PDF user manual online - we are currently working on that.

To answer your questions:

Dimensions: 14.5cm x 6.5cm x 4.5cm [5.7" x 2.6" x 1.8" ]

Weight in Air: 280 grams [9.9 oz ]

Buoyancy with cap closed: 1/2 pound positive

Buoyancy with cap open: 1/4 pound positive

The USB synching will be for both PC and Mac users. Don't worry, we want to make sure that everyone has the ability to use the computer interface!

Please let me know if you have any further questions!

Sincerely,
Katharine

Katharine Caldwell
Project Manager
Nautilus Lifeline

NAUTILUS LIFELINE
TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS
Frequency Range: 156.025 MHz – 163.275 MHz
Channel Spacing: 25 KHz
Frequency Stability: +/- 10ppm
Antenna Connector: SMA
Antenna Impedance: 50 Ohms
Supply Voltage: 3.7V DC
Battery Capacity: 1850 mAh Li-on
Maximum RF Power: 2 Watts
Maximum Deviation: +/- 5KHz
AF Output: 400 mW @ 8 Ohms for 10% THD
Operating Temperature: -10C to +55C [14 - 131 degF ]
Weight: 9.88 Oz (280 g)

[rlskill1]

Only three people have placed entries for the contest. Seems like the odds of winning one of these units would be very good if someone submitted a story.

Last week's contest had 15 entries. If NL makes good on the contest, then they are giving away 20+ units over the next year.

I won the first contest. I hope many SB'ers win the remaining contests.

[NetDoc]

A DEMA attendee said the Nautilus Lifeline was one of his top 3 picks of new gear this year! That would have been me.

[rlskill1]

That's RIGHT!! Well I entered the contest and won the first round! I eagerly await shipment of my new radio. I think the Nautilus Lifeline will become the new safety gear required on dive boats for both crew and divers.

[Peter_C]

We had a discussion on our local yahoo group. I asked the question if the unit could be used to mark objects underwater, utilizing the GPS. Currently we use a GPS in a canister and send it up on a spool for a few minutes to gain a lock on location, then reel it back down. That is one of my goals for this unit.

Hi Peter,

Sorry for the delayed reply! I was busy discussing your questions with the designers...

1) There is no cost associated with pre-ordering units. Shipping is estimated to be end of March 2011. We will contact you a few weeks before the shipping date to confirm your order and to get your credit card information. We will not charge your card until shipping day.

2) It is possible to set the sleep timeout as high as 255 minutes. This is the maximum value - and it may affect the battery life of the unit (longterm) if you are constantly setting the timeout at its maximum value.

3) Using the USB cable is the only way to extract the GPS Log. The GPS log can be viewed on a Computer. We are still working on various ways to view the log.

4) It may take a little longer to acquire the GPS coordinates with the cap closed, but as long as the unit is oriented vertically, it should work.


We're still looking into your last question! I'll be in touch when we have a concrete answer for you.

Looking forward to hearing from you. Let me know if you have any other questions!

Sincerely,
Katharine


Katharine Caldwell
Operations Manager
Nautilus Explorer / Nautilus Lifeline
PO Box 97182
Richmond, BC V6X 8H3
604-657-7614 phone
888-434-8322 toll free (USA / Canada)
604-241-1922 fax




So far their customer service seems to be great in answering questions. I also give props to Nautilus Explorer for looking to improve safety for their customers diving off their liveaboards.

Since I dive off an unattended boat in the open ocean at some point I will be picking one of these units up.

[NetDoc]

They will have their own manufacturer's forum sometime today. Thanks for posting this for us.

[Coral-Reefer]

Here are the technical specs from the manufacturer along with my comments as a radio professional :dork2: for over 30 years:

NAUTILUS LIFELINE
TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS
Frequency Range: 156.025 MHz – 163.275 MHz
This covers the marine band which anyone can use around the water. I haven't bought one yet so I am not sure how to change channels. If you do change channels be aware of what the emergency channels are in the area you are in. This also gets well in to the business band.

Channel Spacing: 25 KHz
This is fine as marine channels are not subject to the FCC mandated narrowbanding of radio channels. Be aware that if you use this on a business band channel after 1-1-2013, you will be transmitting illegally.

Frequency Stability: +/- 10ppm
This is fine for marine channels, I guess.

Antenna Connector: SMA
Probably the best antenna interface for handheld radios

Antenna Impedance: 50 Ohms
Standard

Supply Voltage: 3.7V DC
Slightly low supply for a radio that is meant to last for any length of time at 2 watts transmit power. Probably kept this low to keep the size and weight of the radio down. However, it is a rechargeable lithium ion battery and and if charged should do just fine.

Battery Capacity: 1850 mAh Li-on
Goodly amount of capacity

Maximum RF Power: 2 Watts
For a unit with only 3.7 vdc of supply voltage, this is as much as the radio could probably transmit without killing the battery really fast. However, see my comments below about this.

Maximum Deviation: +/- 5KHz
Standard for wide banded channels

AF Output: 400 mW @ 8 Ohms for 10% THD
Pretty good for a unit this size.

Operating Temperature: -10C to +55C [14 - 131 degF ]
I won't be diving in anything colder or hotter than this!

Weight: 9.88 Oz (280 g)
Nice


I know... more information than you wanted but I couldn't resist.

Conceptually, this is a really nice product. It seems to have 3 purposes: 1) to talk to a water or land based radio on the marine channels. I don't think it is intended to be used on commercial channels, 2) to function as a visual beacon and 3) to transmit distress and GPS location on emergency marine channels. The website is very informative and I could find no where on the site where the company makes glossed over general and unsubstantiated comments about the product or its capabilities, as is often the case when one sells consumer grade radios over the internet. As a matter of fact, I would not really refer to this as a consumer grade product if for no other reason thatn it is truly designed to be submersible to 425' with the cover closed.

I had some operational concerns about the radio until I noticed the display on the side and all concerns weresatisfied and eliminated! There is plenty of information there and the fact that it displays GPS coordinates gives me a reason to take it to the lake when I dive!

It seems the $299 price is holding for now. Leisure Pro and Scubatoys both have it for the same price as the manufacturer. So, for now there are no "low ballers" out there selling it. This is good. Everyone wants to save money, but I like the fact that it seems the manufacturer has required the resellers to sell it for $299 because believe me if they didn't, they wouldn't. This is refreshing news for your LDS because they can order some and have them in stock for you to play with and then, I know this is old fashioned, but, you can actually by it from them instead of running home and ordering it from a faceless voice or internet form.

All indications I can see point to this being a great product. While lake diving, not in the Great Lakes or Lake Tanganyika, may not seems as threatening as oppen water, this would be awesome even for that. Imagine you are only 100' from from shore and only 50' down at your local lake dive spot. Something happens, you surface and instead of spending time and energy getting to shore, find you phone, getting to your vehicle, etc., you just pop open this baby and immeadiately start calling for help.

In Cozumel (you thought I was off topic, didn't you) I still say that if your in the park a good SMB is best, but wait... its a night dive, BAM! strobe, and radio. I love it. Folks may argue over the actual range but what difference does it make? There are too many variables to accurately spec range anyway. Suffice it to say that it would be fine for 99% of dive situations we would all find ourselves.

My recommendation is that this little device should be as much a part of your dive gear than anything else you have that is intended for emergency use. I have taken my SMB on no less than 150 dives and never unrolled it once except to test. This radio will live right next to it. I am ordering one tomorrow.

Thanks for listening.