Pathetic state of scuba diving magazines ...

[CAPTAIN SINBAD]

I have a shelf full of Sport Diver and Scuba Diver magazines from the last two years. As I was going through them, I could not help but be saddened by what useless junk they have been putting year after year. Instead of serious journalism, accident analysis, case studies, diving medicine, discovery of new dive sites and how to dive them etc, most of these magazines are turning to be advertisements for scuba gear and commercial dive resorts. Since its the same companies that apparently fund these magazines, even the adds dont seem to be much different from issue to issue.

Can anyone please recommend a good diving magazine?

 

[dmoore19]

Scuba Diving Magazine, Undercurrent Reviews Dive Resorts, Liveaboards, & Diving Gear

 

[BUDMANOK]

DAN has a good one

 

[Insta-Gator]

Without any supporting statistics, my perception is that most divers are recreational divers. Recreational hobbyists usually seek out the latest pretty, shinny, exciting trend.

serious journalism, accident analysis, case studies, diving medicine, discovery of new dive sites and how to dive them etc,

Requires too much effort from a hobbyist or requires the serious approach of a professional. Magazines are in business to make money, like every other business. Thus they cater to the hobbyist.

 

[Jim Lapenta]

Advanced Diver Magazine

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Alert Diver that you get with a DAN subscription.

Sport Diver and Scuba Diver never were any good. I started getting them in 2004 and could kick myself for the money I wasted on them. I was lucky in that I realized early on their gear reviews were total bull crap. Nothing but regurgitated ad copy. And now try and find mention of or reviews of high level classes like GUE or UTD training. You won't. It's because they are nothing more than gussied up marketing brochures. Nothing in them should be taken seriously.

I do get Dive Training as an instructor every month and I have to say that it has gotten better lately with articles on tech, local diving, low vis diving, and articles on more interesting stuff. I do not agree with some of the views they have on training and take serious issue with some of the pictures depicting irresponsible practices but they are improving. I will give them that. And a couple months ago they seemed to realize that the direction that certain segments of the industry was going in was less than optimal and started addressing that.

 

[DennisS]

They're following the long tradition of skin diver magazine going back to the 1950s. Their favorite phrase was "an innovative new product"

 

[CAPTAIN SINBAD]

They're following the long tradition of skin diver magazine going back to the 1950s. Their favorite phrase was "an innovative new product"

So true! I was thinking, instead of buying these magazines, I could just ask all the scuba manufacturers to send free pamphlets of their product line.

 

[Avonthediver]

I enjoy only two mag's now "Dive Training" and "Wreck Diving" both offer a lot of info about the sport but granted one is all about wreck's but it has more than just adds.
Sport Diver is just crap now days and I miss Skin Diver but it went the add way and died a slow death. so I guess one day so will Sport Diver.

 

[TSandM]

Tech Diving Magazine is free, and online.

QUEST requires a membership to GUE, but it's a good magazine.

There are a couple of underwater photography magazines on line that are worth reading.

I don't know of anything that's published, except for Alert Diver, that I think is worth the effort to subscribe to.

 

[Mike2Fst]

Tech Diving Magazine has useful information and is available free as a pdf down load, check out their website, Wreck Diving is also good and available with Zinio reader for subscription price, Alert Diver via DAN is very informative as well. I agree, Sport Diver and Scuba Diving have little to offer in knowledge and education.