Is have an AI feature on dive watch better?

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What worries me is the feeling that nags at me that Garmin introduced the Descent a while ago now and it seems like there have been no updates. I can't help wondering if it will soon prove to be an abandoned product idea. I really thought they would bring out a Mk 2 by now, with AI.
Why do you say there have been no updates? I got mine in March 2018 and there have been 4 or 5 firmware upgrades since then. They are certainly not as regular as updates from Shearwater and they Garmin take their damn time in getting them but they definitely do update.
 
I'm looking at an MK1 in the future for its GPS capability. Yes, I know it won't track me underwater, but I want to capture my coordinates immediately upon reaching the surface before current may make me drift too far from a DSMB that I will deploy just short of the surface.
Just be aware that at the moment the entry location is very accurate but the exit location is not.

If you put the watch into dive mode before you start the dive, there's plenty of time for it to get a satellite lock and so the entry location is great. Unfortunately, the GPS only turns back on a second before it saves the exit location and it can be out by as much as 50 metres. Mine often has me in a car park up the cliff from where I actually exited.

I have asked Garmin to fix this multiple times but as yet have not seen anything. All they need to do is turn the GPS on as soon as the watch starts the End Dive Delay rather than at the end of the End Dive Delay.
 
I actually dive with a Perdix AI and the Descent Mk1. They complement each other and the NDL/Deco are very close (not exactly the same even though they both have the same algorithm).

The Mk1 tracks my day, is a smart watch (notifications, etc.), tracks workouts, etc. as well as being a good dive computer, albeit without AI. The Perdix is a great dive computer and tracks the pressure of my tank(s). While I like the idea of the Teric, it is missing so many functions from the Mk1 I would not even consider one as my Perdix does everything it does.
 
I will correct you. My Perdix AI is on the latest firmware and I dived with twins (independent regs) on Saturday and it tracked both tanks.
Thanks!


Just be aware that at the moment the entry location is very accurate but the exit location is not.

If you put the watch into dive mode before you start the dive, there's plenty of time for it to get a satellite lock and so the entry location is great. Unfortunately, the GPS only turns back on a second before it saves the exit location and it can be out by as much as 50 metres. Mine often has me in a car park up the cliff from where I actually exited.

I have asked Garmin to fix this multiple times but as yet have not seen anything. All they need to do is turn the GPS on as soon as the watch starts the End Dive Delay rather than at the end of the End Dive Delay.

Hmm, I'll look at what Ratio does then (or anyone else). Thanks for the feedback
 
Why do you say there have been no updates? I got mine in March 2018 and there have been 4 or 5 firmware upgrades since then. They are certainly not as regular as updates from Shearwater and they Garmin take their damn time in getting them but they definitely do update.

I stand corrected. I did say "it SEEMS like..." :) Obviously, I have not been paying close enough attention to the Descent.

While I like the idea of the Teric, it is missing so many functions from the Mk1 I would not even consider one as my Perdix does everything it does.

The Perdix AI does not do everything the Teric does. But, it does do almost everything the Teric does. In particular, the Teric compass kicks the Perdix compass' butt. The Teric also supports tagging points during a dive, which the Perdix does not. All minor, of course. Especially if you use a separate compass anyway.

In your situation, I would not be thinking of replacing the Descent with a Teric, either. I would be replacing the Perdix with a Teric. Which happens to be just what I did last year. I had a Teric and a Perdix AI. I like the Teric so much, I sold the Perdix and bought a 2nd Teric to have as a backup.
 
Dive watches don’t have AI. Dive computers do.
 
In your situation, I would not be thinking of replacing the Descent with a Teric, either. I would be replacing the Perdix with a Teric. Which happens to be just what I did last year. I had a Teric and a Perdix AI. I like the Teric so much, I sold the Perdix and bought a 2nd Teric to have as a backup.
For me, the appeal of the Teric is that it is also a wrist watch but as I already have the Garmin as a watch I don't need another one (I'm not going to wear a watch on each wrist). While the compass on the Teric may be better than the Perdix, I'm perfectly happy with the compass on the Perdix (and also the Garmin).

As I mount my dive computers on my camera rig (for ease of viewing) the larger form factor of the Perdix is actually a benefit as I can display more data in a larger font.
 
AI is a nice feature, albeit an expensive one.

My sentiment is there is a small percent of the diving population around the world that "need" AI, and if you were a part of that demographic you would know and would not be asking about it.

Beyond the above, AI is more of a want. If you have the money to burn or can get an exceptional deal on an AI computer and transmitter then go for it.

Is AI useful? maybe.

Do I have an AI computer? yes....A fellow club member had purchased a suunto vyper air with transmitter and used it for 11 dives and decided that it was too much of a strain for him to see the info on the screen, he stuck it back in the box and bought something larger with a more colorful display. He offered the computer and transmitter to me for 150 euros....I jumped on it like a fat kid on a cupcake.

An AI computer does not do much during a dive that an SPG does not provide....typically the additional info that you get is how many minutes of air tank you have left based on the computers calculation of your current consumption rate.

The real benefits of AI are after the dive:
1. I don't have to look at my spg and note my end dive pressure for my log book...I don't even have to remember my beginning dive pressure either as it is recorded in the computer's memory.

2. When downloading info to a personal computer/laptop, data such as RMV, SAC, average consumption etc can be calculated and displayed. (I believe that some AI computers are capable of displaying this info during a dive as well).

The problem is that AI is very easy to get used to and then you will not want to go back to using an SPG. I still dive with an spg but only because I am too lazy to remove it from my reg set and it is not an inconvenience to have it as part of my kit when I dive. I roll my eyes at the notion that some folk state that they are somehow "streamlining" their gear by eliminating a hose, or reducing failure points, etc. The human body with all the dive gear on it is so inefficient from a fluidynamic standpoint that the marginal gain of removing a hose is irrelevant. And the notion of failure points just makes me shake my head as divers will rant about how they are eliminating failure points in their setup while actively ignoring others out of ignorance, convenience, or both.

So, AI could be useful, but in my opinion is mostly novel. I like it but would not spend the money to buy it retail or what folks typically want for their used AI computers and transmitters. If mine transmitter was to die or my AI computer failed, I would just switch back to referring to my spg and think nothing of it. I would then wait until AI drops significantly in price before entertaining purchasing it again. But if cost is not a barrier and you like feature-filled gear then go for it, I have not personally met anyone who dives AI that did not like it.

-Z
 
AI is a nice feature, albeit an expensive one.

My sentiment is there is a small percent of the diving population around the world that "need" AI, and if you were a part of that demographic you would know and would not be asking about it.

Beyond the above, AI is more of a want. If you have the money to burn or can get an exceptional deal on an AI computer and transmitter then go for it.

Is AI useful? maybe.

Do I have an AI computer? yes....A fellow club member had purchased a suunto vyper air with transmitter and used it for 11 dives and decided that it was too much of a strain for him to see the info on the screen, he stuck it back in the box and bought something larger with a more colorful display. He offered the computer and transmitter to me for 150 euros....I jumped on it like a fat kid on a cupcake.

An AI computer does not do much during a dive that an SPG does not provide....typically the additional info that you get is how many minutes of air tank you have left based on the computers calculation of your current consumption rate.

The real benefits of AI are after the dive:
1. I don't have to look at my spg and note my end dive pressure for my log book...I don't even have to remember my beginning dive pressure either as it is recorded in the computer's memory.

2. When downloading info to a personal computer/laptop, data such as RMV, SAC, average consumption etc can be calculated and displayed. (I believe that some AI computers are capable of displaying this info during a dive as well).

The problem is that AI is very easy to get used to and then you will not want to go back to using an SPG. I still dive with an spg but only because I am too lazy to remove it from my reg set and it is not an inconvenience to have it as part of my kit when I dive. I roll my eyes at the notion that some folk state that they are somehow "streamlining" their gear by eliminating a hose, or reducing failure points, etc. The human body with all the dive gear on it is so inefficient from a fluidynamic standpoint that the marginal gain of removing a hose is irrelevant. And the notion of failure points just makes me shake my head as divers will rant about how they are eliminating failure points in their setup while actively ignoring others out of ignorance, convenience, or both.

So, AI could be useful, but in my opinion is mostly novel. I like it but would not spend the money to buy it retail or what folks typically want for their used AI computers and transmitters. If mine transmitter was to die or my AI computer failed, I would just switch back to referring to my spg and think nothing of it. I would then wait until AI drops significantly in price before entertaining purchasing it again. But if cost is not a barrier and you like feature-filled gear then go for it, I have not personally met anyone who dives AI that did not like it.

-Z

I think this is a fair appraisal and I can't add much that Zef hasn't already said.

I recently bought a AL i450t and transmitter after seeing a good deal. I love seeing all the essential data with a glance at my wrist, particularly as my near sight has deteriorated with age. I was starting to struggle to view my spg, usually taking a few moments to focus even with multi-focal contact lenses in.
The computer screen (albeit a wrist sized DC) is clearer and I haven't had any issues reading it.
I also love convenience of downloading all that data onto my laptop, but of course you can live without that!
I do still take the spg as back up and occasionally glance at it (moreso when I first switched) but I haven't regretted my decision to move to AI at all.
 
An AI computer does not do much during a dive that an SPG does not provide....typically the additional info that you get is how many minutes of air tank you have left based on the computers calculation of your current consumption rate.

The real benefits of AI are after the dive:

[snip]

The problem is that AI is very easy to get used to and then you will not want to go back to using an SPG. I still dive with an spg but only because I am too lazy to remove it from my reg set and it is not an inconvenience to have it as part of my kit when I dive. I roll my eyes at the notion that some folk state that they are somehow "streamlining" their gear by eliminating a hose, or reducing failure points, etc.

You don't think having a Gas Time Remaining calculation done for you, that you can see in real time, is a "real benefit"? I do. Not everyone needs it. But, there are a lot of features on many dive computers that I think are a benefit, but that not everyone has a use for.

Why is it a problem to not want to go back to using an SPG? I don't want to go back to using an SPG. I have several extra transmitters as backups, so that I (hopefully) won't have to go back to an SPG. What is wrong with that?

In Steve Lewis' book, The Six Skills, he has a whole chapter on Trim. In their, he defines trim at its highest level of performance to include having a neat, tidy, uncluttered rig. You don't take anything in the water that you don't need.

I wholeheartedly agree with the concept of not taking anything in the water that you don't need.

If you are doing recreational (sport) dives and you have AI, then you do not need an SPG (but you MIGHT need a better, more reliable AI...). Further, anyone should be able to recognize that, minor as it is, having a hose coming off your first stage running down to a clip on your waist belt, or around to a clip on your chest, is an entanglement hazard. When you don't have AI, it's a necessary evil, as it were. So necessary and, for so long, with no other real option that our community accepts it without question (generally). But, if you think you could get hung up on something by having a little bungee cord on your wing, then surely you could get hung up on a hose that is 24 or 26" long (or longer) and runs from tank valve down behind your arm?

My first tech instructor called me out in class once for saying, during a presentation of a dive plan, "I didn't do XYZ because I was just being lazy and I thought it was not necessary for this exercise." He said that not doing something because I was being lazy is the worst thing he ever heard me say, as a diver.
 

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