Dive Computers (Suunto vs Oceanic)

[SnorkelLA]

I've got a Suunto Cobra AI, and it's nice enough I suppose.

Its absurdly conservative with absolutely no way to change it.

Very well built out of some rubberized material that is tough as nails

The computer-logbook-cable-thingamajig is complete BS that I regret paying all the extra money for

Quick disconnect is nice

The dive log in the computer itself has about a 1 or 2 dive memory, and in order to look further back you need to have the software and cable (WHICH DONT WORK)

It's a pretty reliable computer, but I've had it do some crazy stuff. Such as alerting me to my ascent rate after going up about 3 feet to get to the deck on a wreck dive

It's also gone into deco a few times because I didn't ascend at the pace of a turtle with 4 broken legs.

Also had it tell me to perform a safety stop on a dive that my max depth was 31'

It would make someone else a very nice computer for shallow reef dives, but in my opinion-

It has NO PLACE whatsoever for divers that go deeper than 40 feet. Just does too much wacky stuff


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[drrich2]

If Oceanics are not too liberal, and Suuntos are substantially more conservative, then it stands to reason Suuntos are overly conservative.

Unless an excess of Oceanic users are getting bent, and even then, since some Oceanics let you choose between algorithms and you don't have to push NDL anyway, I'm trying to understand what would lead someone to choose a product that would 'force' them (in a sense) to cut bottom time short (or go into deco).

If Suunto has a much better interface or some other advantage, that could off-set the issue. So, does it?

 

[Lorenzoid]

If Oceanics are not too liberal, and Suuntos are substantially more conservative, then it stands to reason Suuntos are overly conservative.

I suppose an Oceanic might very well be "too" liberal for me. I've seen these arguments before--that you don't see _________ brand computer users taking undeserved hits left and right. Do we know of ANY commonly available computers that are known for giving people undeserved hits? To me, it's not unlike taking the (already conservative) dive tables and adding a few extra minutes of conservatism. Why not, if it makes someone feel extra safe? It keeps me happy knowing I have one of the most conservative computers out there. I bought a Suunto for the same reason I drive a Volvo--extra margin of safety that I'll probably never need.

As for being "forced" to cut bottom time "short," my dives are long enough for me. I dive mostly reefs at an average depth of, say, 60 feet, and get an hour of bottom time, which is plenty for me. But I've also dived wrecks at 100 feet or so with no problem, and ran out of no-deco time just a few minutes before most of the other divers. What's a mere three or five minutes? The only time it added a few minutes of deco stop was on a shark dive where a whole group of us knelt on the bottom for what seemed like an eternity--I was more than bored with the show and ready to ascend after an hour or whatever, but I held out until we were done, which I realize in hindsight was a mistake and won't repeat.

 

[aprivetera]

Depends on what you are using your computer for. I am just a rec diver with no real desire (right now) to advance into tec, so my Suunto D4i works just fine. I had never owned a computer before so I have enjoyed all the features. With the D4i you have the nitrox option as well, so it covers all the diving you could do as a rec diver. It has a nice price point if you are a price sensitive diver on a budget like myself.

If you plan on doing tec or have cash to burn the higher models have gas mixing, a compass, and some other bells and whistles that could be useful I imagine. I can't speak to it being more conservative than Oceanic because I have only dove with other Suunto divers. The quality of the watch is very nice and it doesn't look bad if you want to wear it out and impress people with your knowledge of dive physics. dork2. I am no physicist but I would say from a practical point of view: if you have friends that dive Suunto, buy a Suunto so you don't have to deal with differences that may crop up between my scientist and your scientist.

either way, its a great investment. enjoy it!

 

[muzikbiz22]

Been using the D4i, w/AI, since the very first day it came out. Hundreds and hundreds of dives, I've never been bent or have died. FWIW, I'm usually the first off the boat, and last back on. You can slice it up and dice it up, however you like. A more "liberal" computer won't do you any good, if you're an air hog. Get MacDive software, as DM4 "has challenges". There are lots of good computers out there Just my 2 cents.

 

[Quero]

While everybody else debates the hypothetical merits of sufficiently/overly conservative algorithms, I'll stick to practicalities. I don't recommend Oceanic products to my own customers because while service is easy if you live in the Americas, it's only easy if you live and dive there and nowhere else. If you travel outside this bit of the world, you often can't get parts without waiting weeks and weeks and weeks. I once owned a Veo that the service tech couldn't get parts for here, so I gave it away to my son-in-law who lives in Arizona. Since I've had my own dive business, I've had a number of customers with Oceanic comps end up having to rent computers here because minor repairs were impossible, and this is one of the diving hubs of the world. For me, doing lots of diving outside the US, I want a product with ease of service, many techs all over the place, and a truly international network, rather than a spattering of poorly-stocked service centers. Oceanic (Hollis, Aeris, etc.) just doesn't have this sort of reach. Therefore I recommend Suuntos or Uwatecs for anyone who envisions world travel for scuba.

 

[Insta-Gator]

Suunto owners will like Suunto.

Oceanic owners will like Oceanic.

My first computer was a from the Oceanic family and still works 20 years later.
My current computer is an Oceanic Pro Plus 2.1 AI and I love it. I've had it two years and had no issues at all. I highly recommend the Oceanic Pro Plus 2.1 or later.

Others may or may not agree. YMMV

 

[Steve_C]

Started life with an Oceanic (Aeris). Tried to change the batteries on a trip to key largo and flooded it. With several days of diving left I grabbed a suunto because the store had one in my price range. When I returned home the LDS was able to save the Aeris. For the next several years I dove both of them. Then the Suunto died. Disliked the interface so I did not get it fixed. Decided that all I wanted was a nitrox computer and nothing else. So I bought a ZOOP. Must easier to work the fewer menus.

I wear both omputers on every dive. The Suunto is a bit more conservative. A few minutes of NDL at 90 ft. The Aeris is much quicker to give credit when I go up a bit.

I like the fact that they are different. Normally I dive the Suunto. However, every once in while there is something extra interesting or another reason to stay down a bit longer and I will do what I call pseudodeco. In that case I will let the Suunto go into deco while the Aeris is still within NDL. I start up before the Aeris goes into deco. When I go up I make sure that both computers are cleared and let the Suunto control the ascent so I have more required stop time than called for by the Aeris.

This system gives me a backup if a computer dies. It also gives me a controlled way to get a bit more bottom time if I really feel a need for it without having to memorize a bunch of tables.

Not recommending it to anybody but it is what I do.

These days dives are more often limited by NDL than by air and I carry a pony on deeper dives which I have yet to have to use.

 

[Crowley]

I'm Suunto through and through - having worked with and personally used Uwatec, Oceanic, Mares and blahblah. I have an 8-year old Suunto Vyper, it's made around 3,500 dives, and has never had a problem. Yes, I am aware that some computers develop faults, but Suunto customer service has, with the exception of a minority of cases, been exemplary - to the point where they have replaced out-of-warranty computers for free.

For the conservative/liberal argument. I never got bent diving with an old Uwatec Aladdin, which is much more forgiving in terms of NDL than a Suunto. They use entirely different mathematical models. Suunto has spent millions of dollars and hundreds of thousands of man hours researching its Reduced Gradient Bubble Model (RGBM) which takes into account the presence of microbubbles in the circulatory system which older Buhlmann-based computers do not.

From my personal perspective, therefore, given what I do for a living, conservatism for recreational diving is not a bad thing. I have not invested any money and only a few hundred hours of study into decompression theory. I am not going to argue with Suunto if they are slightly more conservative than other models. I also don't like the Oceanics general menu configuration, but that's semantics. I'm also not sponsored by Suunto!

For a basic, well appointed recreational dive computer, the old Gekko, Vyper and Zoop are perfect and relatively inexpensive. I cannot fault them.

Just my opinon, of course.

Cheers,

Crowley

 

[Lorenzoid]

One thing to add that Crowley's excellent post brings to mind with regard to the conservative versus liberal argument is that if you are aware of the kinds of behaviors that the Suunto RGBM algorithm seems to weight more heavily in reducing no-deco time, you can easily adjust your behavior to maximize your no-deco time if that's your major concern: slow ascents, long-ish surface intervals, avoid reverse profiles, go easy on the multi-day repetitive diving, always a safety stop, etc.