I was willing to get one anyway at some point but I assumed it would be when I took Trimix. ... Is this a cost of doing business and I should bite the bullet now and get a trimix capable puter or would a standard 3 gas puter like the Aeris Epic (or similar) be fine and then sell it later or use the tables for trimix. I have a single gas guage mode watch for BT later but do not want to end up with 3 computers unless that is the norm.
It appears from your post that trimix is likely in the (? not too distant) future, so I would recommend getting a He-capable computer now, rather than buying a multigas, non-He unit, then selling it in the future. Opinions vary, but I particularly like the Liquivision X-1 because of its size and display quality.
As for the 'discussion' regarding tables and computers for more advanced diving - yes, you ordinarily adhere to your tables and timer as the primary 'control' during a decompression dive. But, having a trimix computer for trimix dives does not mean that you are not doing dive planning, cutting tables, following your run times, etc. Rather, it means you are adding a level of redundancy to the (at least 2) copies of your dive plan that you will already be carrying. I find it reassuring to see my computer(s) clear while I am at my 20 ft stop, ahead of my tabled time. (And, yes, I will at times surface earlier in that case.) It is interesting, that a discussion of using the RDP vs a dive computer doesn't produce exactly the same advice, and frequently favors the computer.
Is it possible to have 'too much' gear? Well, a somewhat cynical answer would be 'No'. I have ended up with 3 computers - an older Vytec, a Nitek He and a Liquivision X-1. I plan to sell the Vytec and replace it with a Helo2, then sell the Nitek with no replacement, and downsize to 2. I like having two in case one fails. Is it essential - probably not. Three is probably overkill, but two is a 'nice to have'.
