How long before phone-based uw cases eat the low end computers?

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Shearwater or someone needs to look at this from the other direction. Instead of adding dive computer functionality to a smart phone, work on adding smart phone capability to the dive computer:thumb:. I'd feel better about running a dive computer with dive software than diving a phone with some android or ios deco models. Can you imagine all the free dive computer apps that would pop up based on someone's personal model of decompression theory?
 
Seriously, where is this need to bring a smartphone underwater coming from? The beauty of diving for me is all about escaping from the surface into a quiet, beautiful environment. The day I can get an email underwater is the day I will stop diving for good.
 
The day I can get an email underwater is the day I will stop diving for good.
Seems a bit drastic. You do know you can turn that stuff off, right?
 
Seems a bit drastic. You do know you can turn that stuff off, right?

Yes. What i don't know is why I would carry something turned off on a dive with me, even just for some functions like email. I do know that every extra function in a piece of software is a new chance of crash and failure. It depends on the dives you plan, i suppose. It certainly would not work for me.
 
Seriously, where is this need to bring a smartphone underwater coming from? The beauty of diving for me is all about escaping from the surface into a quiet, beautiful environment. The day I can get an email underwater is the day I will stop diving for good.

Long deco stops can be pretty boring.
 
Yes. What i don't know is why I would carry something turned off on a dive with me, even just for some functions like email.
Because you own the phone, not the reverse?

I don't even have notifications turned on for e-mail. I'll get to them when I feel like it. No InstaTwitFace either. In sum, "You damn kids get off my lawn."

Except I don't have a lawn.
 
We started our foray into dive computer design back in the 90’s with the idea to put a Palm Pilot into a case, with appropriate sensors connected. It quickly became apparent that by the time you created the sensor interface and the processing necessary to deliver the data to the device, you would be better off, and far more efficient, just building a dedicated graphic dive computer from the ground up. So that’s what we did.

This phone-in-a-case discussion comes up frequently, and clearly lots of folks have had the idea to house a phone with some software and sensors and turn it into a dive computer. I suspect some of the crop of dive computers we see appearing are in fact based on Chinese pre-made modules that are basically designed to be phones, running some kind of OS that allows for app development.

A couple of points:
The OS underlying phones is not necessarily designed to be a real-time system. And there is a lot of overhead in a phone, which costs battery time. Reliability in a timing critical application like running real-time deco profiles is a real question.

On the other hand, the cameras are quite good, and lots of folks have old phones laying around they don’t use. I definitely won’t dismiss the solution out of hand, at least for recreational divers. I could see a phone in a case being turned into an interesting camera/ dive recorder/ reference/ PDA type device for diving.

However, some of the posts here seem to assume that you would have access to similar functions underwater as you have on the surface. The physics just don’t allow for that.

Phones communicate (phone, wi-fi, bluetooth, NFC) through RF, and at frequencies that are attenuated very rapidly underwater- millimeters to inches. Basically two phones aren’t going to communicate via those methods unless the cases are touching, or unless they have some kind of intermediate communications protocol, like an acoustic modem. You are not going to send messages or get calls or emails underwater without a lot of intervening technology.

I doubt these are going to threaten dedicated dive computers anytime soon, but they could have a place, if well done and reliable.

-Ron
 
Phones communicate (phone, wi-fi, bluetooth, NFC) through RF, and at frequencies that are attenuated very rapidly underwater- millimeters to inches. Basically two phones aren’t going to communicate via those methods unless the cases are touching, or unless they have some kind of intermediate communications protocol, like an acoustic modem. You are not going to send messages or get calls or emails underwater without a lot of intervening technology.
Lasers for comm.

We'll equip sharks with frikken' relays.
 
... smartphones we carry around with us everywhere and have tons of computing power could easily run pretty advanced software on them to be a very compelling dive computer.

My advise is to run away scared: between all the bugs and malicious adware, pathetic battery life, and system features like garbage collection and opportunistic scheduling, I'd take tables over a cellphone any dive. As would any product liability lawyer with half a clue.
 
Like many said before, the form factor of a phone is just wrong for most people. It just too big. From a safety point of view, I would likely not dive with a smartphone due to possible stability issues. I'd like my computer to be a lot more stable than my phone. Also, the software really has to be fantastic (which is rare to say the least).

What I do expect (and look forward to) is cases for phones to use as cameras. I see that one is coming out for Iphones and next year one for android phones. If it's good, I may very well buy one but to consider one, the seals must be top notch.
 

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