Verizon's new Underwater Cell Phone...

[Cheekymonkey]

I think its a great thingkk, I carry my cell phone in my drysuit when I dive with students in case I have to make an emergency call when I get out, theres no running to the car for it and looking for keys. But i have ruined one phone with a drysuit leak, this would solve that problem for me.

 

[letterboy]

What kind of pressure issues would occur with the phone being in your pocket while diving?

 

[mike_s]

Regarding "Open water"

It's amazing to 110 miles out in the Flower Garden Banks NMS (Gulf of Mexico) and see folks talking on their cell phones (while on the boat, of course). Nope, they aren't satellite phones---there's a tower on one of the nearby oil platforms. When conditions are fair, they can usually hit that tower.
Meanwhile, my cell phone is probably still in the trunk of my car. I'll get back to it in a couple of days.

really, I had never heard that before. why the heck does an oil platform have a cell tower on it? (maybe the use it as a 'central comm point' for other company owned towers in the area.

I can see the Verizon guy standing in the wind on the plaform going "can you hear me now?"


I don't know what the specific range of most of todays cell phones are, but I've used them easily 12+ miles offshore (from land towers) on several ocassions..

 

[Cheekymonkey]

What kind of pressure issues would occur with the phone being in your pocket while diving?

Not really sure, but I dive with my razr every dive i'm in my drysuit, only ever had a problem once and that was hwen I had a flood.

 

[Kevfin]

The heck with cell phones. Every single rude and obnoxious driver here in California seems to be talking on one. I guess, the Underwater Cell Phone might be convenient for the driver that veers off the road and into a lake or ocean... yeah, keep yakking...

 

[TimAZ]

I think it's long overdue. Ironically I was having a conversation at work last week (co-worker had just dropped his phone in the toilet and ruined it ) and saying "with all the technology, howcome they can't make a phone that's waterproof?" And then I saw this.

In the toilet huh? That must have been a pretty urgent call one way or the other.
Hi Mom (splash splash splash)

You're not talking to me from the bathroom are you?

Uh no uh (GLUNK)

 

[DiverBeth]

Cell phones have their uses. If you need to have a cell phone with you when diving you might have certain issues that a therapist could help with.

 

[undefined]

How long before someone comes out with a bluetooth headset to go with this? I can just see it now - a bunch of folks diving FFM w/ a BubbleBerry and Bluetooth. Someone should let Oceanic know that if they can find a way to integrate their new HUD mask technology with Outlook they have a market

 

[DawgDiver]

All kidding aside, if somebody developed a u/w text messaging thing for divers, i'll bet it would sell like hotcakes. Probably would be pretty affordable.

 

[Fish_Whisperer]

I've got an old cellphone lying around around, somewhere. I'm going to open it up, remove the guts, and then tuck it into my pocket. Next time I go diving, I'm going to pull it out and mime talking on it.