Atomic Aquatics Cobalt Dive Computer

[sharkshark]

Had my first semi-catastrophic dive comp fail a couple weeks back in Cozumel, where my (very) trusted Cobra decided to suddenly be "off" by a good 15 ft. Made me look into the wonderful world of new dive comps, and thanks to this board, there's a wealth of info.

I've read about the wrist-vs-console - in my case, I used to have a wrist (Vyper), and after a dive emergency of having to juggle air console/wrist/BC hose I fell in love with the Cobra style. With a simple retractor, it's as convenient for me as wrist, yet doesn't interfere with my arm's range of motion when using monopod, etc. I know there's loads of debates pro-con, but at least for my own style, console seems the way to go.

I can of course stick with Suunto, especially if they're willing to help out with a decade+ unit, but the Cobalt certainly seems like a pretty excellent unit. I love the layout, the ease of use, and so on. I'm not surprised to see that some have had issues on a relatively new product, but with Ron and others speaking so forthrightly about them, and the procedures for redress, it gives me faith that the company is up to the task of redressing almost any issue here.

So, if I am to plunge into a different comp world, I wanted to make sure that I've got a few things under my belt:

1) I know that the recall took care of several series of s/n, and the button issue with magnets rusting affected other early units. So I don't get shafted with an older unit that may have been kicking around for a while, what's something I should look for in terms of serial range to know that I'm getting a unit free from both issues?

2) I'm mildly skeptical about the battery - I'm used to a computer I change battery once a year, of course. Anybody have any specific charging woes, besides issues that recent software updates took care of? If in a few years the battery needs complete replacement, is it a standard LiIon unit, or something more funky, and needed to be done at factory?

3) Downloading - I've spent a decade fighting with Bull, um, "shark" flaky DLs from the Suunto. I have the Serial cable still with a serial>USB adapter, but even using the USB cable proves to be a bit of a nightmare. For the sake of logging, I want to make sure the normal USB adapter doesn't require much fiddling, and that god forbid a replacement of the adapter is easy to come by, and no exorbitant.

I know some of this is talked about in the 112 pages below, but if anyone has something specific to add, I'd love to hear about it. If anyone has gone from Cobra>Cobalt, I'd love to hear from you. If anyone has gone to Cobalt, and has a love/hate relationship with it, I'd love to hear that as well - I'm not silly enough to think that this stuff is completely perfect in all circumstances, but it'd be nice to know any "quirks" about the unit before I get one.

Finally, and this is way off topic, this weekend certainly made me rethink the need for dual computers - I dont' have a fortune to spend on a second computer (frankly, the Cobalt will be a stretch), so if there's thoughts about dual computers vs having a second analogue console showing depth/air (and, yeah, I could conceivably do both!), I'd welcome response offthread.

 

[RonR]

SharkShark,

I'm sure plenty could respond to your other questions, but here are my responses to the ones I can answer:

1) Cobalt serial #'s identify the date of manufacture in the first four digits- the week and year- so anything ending with 10 was made in 2010, 12 was made in 2012, etc. The recall was for inspection, it covered units up to the first 16 weeks of 2012. You should make sure anything older than that has been checked. The button issues are easily fixed if they turn up, but anything of recent manufacture has improved sealing over earlier manufacture. Whenever problems have been identified, Atomic has moved to fix them in new product, so anything produced in the last year has many improvements over early production.

2) The Cobalt uses a lithium ion battery that should last for many years. They are rated for 5-700 charge/ discharge cycles (each cycle good for 40-60 hours of actual diving), but that's a bit misleading as "failure" means beginning a gradual loss of capacity. We have had very few fail in the field, and those mostly not the battery itself, but the circuit board that has the protection circuitry that is attached to the battery. It's actually quite easy to replace, but Atomic calls it a dealer procedure (it doesn't need to go back to the factory) because it's a custom battery and connector, it needs to come from Atomic. That said, they haven't had any problem if users want to replace them themselves- it's not more difficult than sealing a camera housing, and doesn't expose any electronics.

3) Cobalt has "real" USB built in- it's not converting from a serial interface, so a standard off the shelf USB cable (included) works fine. There is an adapter to mate this to the pins on the Cobalt, but it's just a simple connector and involves no signal conversion. Easy and cheap to replace if lost or broken. Almost all problems people have with downloading track back to Windows driver issues or desktop software, not connectivity to the Cobalt. Atomic has directly supported several third party dive log developers, so at this point Diving Log 5.0 (Windows)Diving Log 5.0 - scuba logbook software for diver - dive log, scuba log and Dive Log Manager and MacDive (Mac) all provide direct download capability for the Cobalt with full factory support. These are much more feature rich programs than any manufacturer supplies.


Best thing would be to go and play with one. Good questions.

Ron

 

[marku8a]

Yes, the update was posted last week. The list on the Atomic site is showing just the changes that would be clearly noticeable. But this update rolls up a year's worth of internal improvements as well. Here's a slightly expanded list including noticeable bug fixes.

Ron

I really like the Time of Day and Surface Interval changes. I am not sure that I will be using the new compass bearing choices but will play around with them.

Thanks Ron.

Mark

 

[sharkshark]

Hey, Ron, thanks so much, exactly what I had assumed on all fronts, very good to see.... We'll see how it plays out, but I might have found my next computer


There's a few other bits in my post above, as Ron said, if anyone feels like tackling them without sullying the main thread, I welcome any DMs.

 

[soonerwink]

Just updated my Cobalt with the new firmware, and went very smoothly. I love that Atomic has make it possible to update the Cobalt. With this ability and their great customer service, makes me very happy that I chose the Cobalt. I am waiting for the opportunity to make this my backup though, when they come out with the wrist-hoseless version.

 

[Zeagle Eagle]

1. When updating the Cobalt through the logbook. Step 3 says select your new flashfile through the Locate flash button. Where is the locate flash button found.
2. After clicking on the start update button in the logbook it says done; but, I never get connection closed.
3. I never see the date and time on the cobalt.

---------- Post added March 8th, 2013 at 07:49 PM ----------

I should have given you links, they aren't obvious. There is a web contact form here: Atomic Aquatics Phone is 888-270-8595 if you would prefer to call.

Adan handles a lot of the Cobalt issues, adan@atomicaquatics.com

I would talk through exactly what you are experiencing, they may be able to fix it for you without returning it, possibly by just replacing the keypad, which is very simple.

Ron

I have sent two separate emails to adan@atomicaquatics.com. It has been two weeks with no reply. I guess I will have to call the 800 number.

---------- Post added March 8th, 2013 at 07:58 PM ----------

Firmware update 1.14 failed. It just refuses to update. I am using Win 8. I will try with my netbook and Win 7 later. I seem to remember problems with Win 8 before.

---------- Post added March 8th, 2013 at 08:43 PM ----------

Update to 1.14 successful. I had to use a laptop with Windows 7 on it. I am still having trouble with two of my buttons, the select and the down button.

 

[JoBro]

With Windows 8 x64 you need to install the drivers a special way, as they are not digitally signed for windows 8 x64 and hence blocked.

I was able to successfully update from 1.17 to 1.41 using the logbook software 1.63 and sync my dives on windows 8 x64 with no issues.

Sent from my GT-N7105 using Tapatalk 2

 

[RonR]

...
I am still having trouble with two of my buttons, the select and the down button.

You can look under the keypad following these instructions: https://dl.dropbox.com/u/71299384/Cover removal.pdf

If you see any rust or evidence of corrosion, the keypad needs to be replaced. I'd definitely give a call if you haven't heard back in a day or so- something must have happened to the emails, they are very good with responding. But they are also behind a sometimes over assertive spam filter, even I have lost emails at times.

Ron

 

[Zeagle Eagle]

With Windows 8 x64 you need to install the drivers a special way, as they are not digitally signed for windows 8 x64 and hence blocked.

I was able to successfully update from 1.17 to 1.41 using the logbook software 1.63 and sync my dives on windows 8 x64 with no issues.

Sent from my GT-N7105 using Tapatalk 2

Thanks for the info. That is what I have Windows 8 64 bit running on an i7 processor. I didn't get any chance to "unblock". It's been a pain on a couple of other programs too. I can't seem to access the web page for my security cameras as it blocks it.

---------- Post added March 9th, 2013 at 12:52 AM ----------

Thanks for the PDF of the case removal. I appreciate the time and effort; however, it appears to be very confusing. In the second picture it shows separating the case with the screw driver below the words Atomic. In the 5th picture (second page) it appears that the screwdriver is trying to get the case apart above the words Atomic. Every single picture is very dark and hard to follow. From your pictures I cannot determine where to start pulling the case apart. Spend a little more time on the lighting and I think you will get some much better pictures and one can determine where the division between upper and lower is. I do not want to take a chance of damaging the silicone by pulling on the wrong area.

I spent near on $1300 for this computer and would feel a lot better if Atomic took the responsibility of fixing it.

 

[RonR]

Thanks for the info. That is what I have Windows 8 64 bit running on an i7 processor. I didn't get any chance to "unblock". It's been a pain on a couple of other programs too. I can't seem to access the web page for my security cameras as it blocks it.

---------- Post added March 9th, 2013 at 12:52 AM ----------

Thanks for the PDF of the case removal. I appreciate the time and effort; however, it appears to be very confusing. In the second picture it shows separating the case with the screw driver below the words Atomic. In the 5th picture (second page) it appears that the screwdriver is trying to get the case apart above the words Atomic. Every single picture is very dark and hard to follow. From your pictures I cannot determine where to start pulling the case apart. Spend a little more time on the lighting and I think you will get some much better pictures and one can determine where the division between upper and lower is. I do not want to take a chance of damaging the silicone by pulling on the wrong area.

I spent near on $1300 for this computer and would feel a lot better if Atomic took the responsibility of fixing it.

Atomic will certainly check it out for you and fix whatever the issue is, just call them for an RA number. I just made this as a quick and dirty example for those who want to fiddle with their gear a bit, or who need to because they can't get to a dealer. There are two latches on each side, the two photos show disengaging both positions, as described in the text. The first is towards the hose end from the logo (2nd & 3rd pictures), the second is above the logo (5th picture), you need to disengage both positions. The cover is very tough. But there is no need for you to do it if you an get it to Atomic or to a dealer who can check it out.

Ron