I have noticed that there is a huge bias against ScubaPro among divers. Is it just because it costs more?
ScubaPro are masters of marketing, and they create the perception that there exists a continuum of {low price,low quality} to {high price,high quality} scuba equipment, and then position their brand in the minds of the retail buyer at the {high price,high quality} point. They do this by using a
sophisticated, common design language among their products so that they are readily recognizable as ScubaPro and appear to be part of a unified product offering, carefully
differentiating their of their products from competitors, and through advertising that simultaneously emphasizes the relevance of equipment to safety and the Rolex-like nature of the ScubaPro brand as something that the affluent diver should aspire to.
In general, ScubaPro equipment is high quality and highly fashionable. The rest is pure bunkum.
And yes, there are problems with ScubaPro gear other than price. The first problem, alluded to upthread, is that they
intentionally limit the size of their dealer network which complicates efforts to find parts and service, especially in areas where there aren't a lot of dive shops. The second problem is that some of their efforts to differentiate their products actually
reduce usefulness, with the best example being their GALILEO 2 which is quirky and does not follow the well-established expectations set by the the Shearwater computers that are the market leaders.
I would think that diving equipment would not be something one would want to save money on.
More expensive gear does not make a safer diver. Gear failures have an extremely minor role in the accident history and there is no evidence to suggest that any brand is safer or that more expensive brands as a whole are safer than less expensive brands. Accident history is difficult to interpret, but the best available data would suggest that most of the equipment-related fatalities are due to BC problems, not breathing air equipment as many would expect.
Enjoy the journey
