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2001 Testers' Choice Dive Computers
October 19, 2006
Here's our annual product excellence awards for dive computers, brought to you by Rodale's ScubaLab, the only independent testing facility of scuba life-support equipment.
Dive Computers Reviewed in This Article
In order to do that, a dive computer has to pack a lot of information onto a small screen. And it has to do it in a way that's easy to understand and easy to use. The computers featured here are the ones that do it best--the ones that work clearly and easily no matter what other features they offer. These models are the best of their respective classes--budget, air-integrated, gas-integrated, hoseless, nitrox-capable and downloadable computers. Dive Computers in Review
Aeris 100S A price-competitive computer with a unique feature: It comes with a submersible pressure gauge and shares some of its functions with the SPG. $489.95 Aeris 300G The nitrox-capable version of the 100S. With PC interface. $549.95 Aeris 500AI Offers hose-mounted gas integration and the ability to display both gas time and no-decompression limits simultaneously. Nitrox-capable. With PC interface. $739.95 Aeris 750GT A hoseless high-tech dive computer with features not found on other computers, including a breathing rate indicator and extensive personal settings. Gas-integrated. Nitrox-capable. $1,099.95 Aeris Atmos Pro A 300G without the submersible pressure gauge, making it even less expensive. Nitrox-capable. With PC interface. Best Buy. $399.95 Aeris Atmos Sport A 100S without the SPG. Best Buy. $339.95 Aeris Savant Can be used with nitrox, has an excellent PC interface and an extended deep-diving algorithm. $499.95 Dacor Known For: Hoseless and chest console Dacor Extreme Access Uses a color-enhanced graphic display for nitrogen loading, breathing rate, air remaining and ascent rate. Air-integrated. Hoseless. With PC interface. $875
Genesis Scuba Escort Provides direct user control over various functions, allowing you to change them even at the dive site with push-button ease. Air-integrated. Hoseless. With PC interface. $800 Genesis Scuba Nitrox Resource Easy-to-use and very reasonably priced nitrox-capable computer. Best Buy. $350 Genesis Scuba ReAct Features the best graphic display of nitrogen loading. Nitrox-capable. With PC interface. $400 Genesis Scuba Resource Budget computer that uses effective and intuitive graphic displays. Best Buy. $300
Mares Surveyor A user-friendly model that logs and profiles more dives than the less expensive Tutor. With PC interface. $479 Mares Surveyor Nitrox Gives you the option of making a dozen different gas settings, customizing as much as possible to your diving. Nitrox-capable. With PC interface. $514 Mares Tutor Very easy to use, thanks to two buttons and on-screen prompts. With PC interface. Best Buy. $379
Oceanic Data 100 Made for extended-range diving; provides ability to interface with a PC. Best Buy. $349.95 Oceanic Data Max Pro Least expensive air-integrated dive computer available. Best Buy. $599.95 Oceanic Data Max Pro Plus Easiest-reading computer available; makes excellent use of color-highlighted graphs. Gas-integrated. Nitrox-capable. With PC interface. $869.95 Oceanic Data Plus Reasonably priced, nitrox-capable and made for extended-range diving. With PC interface. Best Buy. $379.95 Oceanic Data Plus 2 Has two buttons instead of the Data Plus's one, adding functions, including a simple walk-through method of use. Nitrox-capable. With PC interface. $419.95 Oceanic DataTrans Uses a color-enhanced graphic display for nitrogen loading, breathing rate, air remaining and ascent rate. Air-integrated. Hoseless. With PC interface. $949.95 Oceanic DataTrans Plus Adds nitrox capability to the DataTrans's list of features. Gas-integrated. Hoseless. With PC interface. $1,154.95 Oceanic Prodigy Most economical model in Oceanic's family of computers. Best Buy. $305.95 Oceanic XTC-100 Large display numbers make this user-friendly wrist computer ideal for older eyes. Nitrox-capable. With PC interface. $499.95
Scubapro Aladin Air Console The computers in the Aladin line are easy to read and offer the best time-to-fly function available. Air-integrated. With PC interface. $710 Scubapro Aladin Air Z Hoseless version of the Aladin Air Console. Air-integrated. With PC interface. $1,110 Scubapro Aladin Air Z 02 Sophisticated, high-tech computer is hoseless, gas-integrated and nitrox-capable. With PC interface. Can be used with a rebreather. $1,250 Scubapro Aladin Pro Features a variable ascent rate indicator with a percentage of the rate displayed on-screen. With PC interface. Best Buy. $320.50 Scubapro Aladin Pro Nitrox An Aladin Pro with nitrox capability added. With PC interface. Best Buy. $370 Scubapro Aladin Pro Ultra A Pro Nitrox with the addition of a screen cover and backlighting. Nitrox-capable. With PC interface. $500 Scubapro Aladin Sport A less complex and less expensive version of the Aladin Pro. With PC interface. Best Buy. $250 Scubapro Aladin Sport Plus A Sport with the addition of a screen cover and backlighting. With PC interface. Best Buy. $350
Ed.'s note: Suunto dive computers are available through Aqua Lung and SeaQuest dealers. Suunto Cobra Packs more features and functions into a small space than any other dive computer we've ever tested. Gas-integrated. Nitrox-capable. With PC interface. $750 Suunto Favor Features a date and time function that stays on as a watch even when the computer is at rest. Best Buy. $250 Suunto Fusion Essentially the same computer as the Favor, but the Fusion also has a backlight and audible alarms. Best Buy. $320 Suunto Stinger Replaces the Suunto Spyder; ScubaLab will test the Stinger in 2001. It's a dive computer! It's a watch! It's also highly adjustable, with a wealth of settings and extensive memory. Excellent for decompression dives. With PC interface. Also available in titanium and silver bands. $845, rubber strap. Suunto Vyper Features include the ability to make a "bookmark" at any point during a dive; this then shows up on the profile when reviewed so you can tell just when an event occurred. Nitrox-capable. With PC interface. $450 How to Stop Scratches According to our online gear survey, the most common problem (reported by 23% of respondents) for dive computer users is that the face of the computer scratches too easily. Fortunately, there are some easy ways to keep your computer from getting scratched: Stick it. Many computer manufacturers and accessory companies make clear plastic sheets that adhere to computer faces to prevent scratches. These often come with a computer when it's new. They can also be purchased separately and cut to fit your particular model. Guard it. Another option is a metal "gauge guard" that forms a kind of cage around your computer or console. These guards are usually made of anodized aluminum and are distributed by some accessory companies. The gauge guard clips directly onto your computer or console. Shield it. The solution favored by European dive computer makers is a clear plastic shield that clips or snaps over the computer's face. This solution may offer the best protection, but it has drawbacks. Bubbles between the shield and the face of the computer screen can make it hard to read under water, and residual water on the computer face can make it hard to read on the surface. Stop the Beeping! There are few things more annoying than an incessantly beeping or flashing dive computer, especially when it's unnecessary. Our recent gear survey showed that the dive computer characteristic cited as "most annoying" by more readers than any other is an overly sensitive ascent rate indicator. (Other annoying characteristics cited in the survey included backlighting that is too dim and dive logs whose memories are too limited.) Here's the deal: Many dive computer ascent rate indicators do not have a built-in buffer to keep the computer from setting off its alarms at the slightest quick movement, indicating that your ascent is too fast. For instance, if your computer is hanging at your waist and you pick it up quickly toward your mask to read it, the ascent rate indicator may go off. If the indicator is buffered (as it is on many models) it won't do that. If your computer has one of those overly sensitive ascent rate indicators, it's best not to ignore it. Most computers won't penalize you for ignoring the alarm as long as you ascend at a reasonable rate, but some of them will. The best way to stop your computer from beeping or flashing its ascent warnings is to pause briefly whenever it does. Try to go as slow as you can, don't make sudden movements and if you have to, make your ascent in a series of pauses. Whenever the computer is unhappy with you about your ascent rate, simply pause and let the computer catch up. Dive by the Colors Many divers use dive computers with nitrogen-loading bar graphs that allow them to select a personal degree of conservatism to provide a greater margin of safety for themselves. Here's how to best use a computer's colors and graphs to realize this important benefit: Step One: Do not allow the nitrogen graph bar to go into the red decompression zone. Step Two: If the graph enters the yellow caution zone, promptly move to shallower water. Step Three: While in shallow water, allow the bar graph time to recede by some number of units. The farther back into the green the graph goes before you surface, the lower the risk. Don't Lock Me Out Most dive computers go into "lockout" mode--meaning the computer stops providing decompression information--if you violate deco stops called for by the computer. In fact, 8 percent of divers who took our online gear survey said they had been locked out by a dive computer. If your car's speedometer quit functioning each time you exceeded the speed limit, would this be acceptable? Certainly not. Then why do manufacturers of so many dive computers use a lockout mode? Hard to say. Computer manufacturers may think their liability is lessened by not allowing the computer to be used after a deco violation. Or maybe they think divers are incapable of following instructions or heeding warnings. Or perhaps it's simply a design cop-out. We believe that dive computers should continue to provide data to the diver after a violation and not become black boxes that take control away from the diver. Bottom line: Divers should control their dives, not computers. Tips for Hoseless Computers
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