computer shopping

[Scottri]

Anymore most of the computers have very similar features. I would look at all the computers available to you in your area through your local shops and decide based on features and the money you want to spend. I prefer hose mounted non-air integrated computers for the following reasons:

Wrist mounted computers are easier to loose or break.
Air integrated means you have no idea how much air you have when the battery fails (and it will without warning sometimes).
Nitrox capabilitie is nice to have even if you don't plan to dive with Nitrox right away.

I like Aeris, Suunto and Oceanic comptuers. I would look for one that has easy to use buttons (I dive cold water and wear 5mm gloves and some buttons are a pain). Make sure it has a backlight feature for low vis and night diving. Other than that, without getting into a lot of technical discussion about algorithms and such most major brands are pretty feature rich.


Scott

 

[Spectre]

The main reason I decided to buy a computer was due to a minor
scare when I was down in Florida. I was just down for a couple
of days, and got sick of what I was doing and took a break and
went diving. Profile got blown slightly [3 minutes over on the
max depth], and I didn't worry about it because the dive was
mostly 10 feet shallower.

On a plane 26 hours later.

3 days later I'm sore as hell.

After checking my e-mail, I find that it's not just me, and that
there is a bug going around the office. However there was
quite the scare beforehand. I decided to buy a computer.

One of the reasons I decided to go with a wrist mount was
because of the reason I would have needed one. If I'm running
off someplace for a couple days, and I'm not sure if I'll even have
time to dive, I don't want to be trucking my dive gear all over the
place. If I've got a console computer, I don't feel like bringing my
whole reg assembly. The Suunto Stinger [what I went with] is
easy enough to toss in my carry-on as I'm heading out the door.

-Jeff

 

[Welshman]

I have a Suunto Mosquito which I think is great. Nitrox capability is worth having.

 

[viper]

I've been using an Aeris Atmos Pro and I'm very satisfied with it.

Good information, easy to understand, the backlight is very bright and the battery is easy to change.



Thanks

 

[Laurence Stein DDS]

I realize that the particular position of your computer is a personal choice. However, if you engage in underwater activities which require you to carry anything, i.e. spearfishing, photography, drift dive with a reel, etc. It is my feeling that a hose mount is easier.

When ascending on an anchor line--especially in a current, you may very well be hanging onto your "stuff" with one hand and the anchor line with the other hand. Assuming the wrist mount is worn like a watch, it is difficult to hang onto a line in a current and read the readout at the same time. You need to turn your forearm inward to read the display and in a current, holding onto the line with your free hand this is difficult.

With the computer on a hose, you sweep the display over the hand on the ascent line.

Having air integration is like having all your eggs in one basket. If your battery goes, you have no computer, no depth guage, no bottom timer and no pressure guage. I prefer to have mechanical guages in a console AND a separate computer not integrated to the air supply. Mechanical depth and pressure guages are in the console and the computer is my primary. If I lose the computer for any reason, I still have instruments to complete the dive and then can fall back onto dive tables to do additional dives.

We are all different. That is simply my preferred way.

Larry Stein