New Apple Watch is a dive computer

[hazmat]

It’s the only color left that will ship on the 23rd. All other colors are already back ordered until November or later. Promised my husband we would be changing his band as soon as replacements are available. Taking our two Apple DW to Cozumel. Just returned the ones we bought last week to the DS. We are new Rec divers only. I like that it is an easy, familiar interface. We were thinking of getting Apple Watches anyway. This was perfect timing. We will most likely sell our sons Apple Watch 7 and get him one too.

Looking forward to hearing your impressions! When are you heading to Cozumel?

 

[aleus]

Quite happy with this news. Looking forward to checking it out. My dive computer just went bonkers earlier this year (with frequent battery changes required before this)

 

[101]

Yup, and if they had to recoup their development costs on a singe purchase, it would probably be MUCH more expensive, especially given the very small number of people who would buy it. This isn't Microsoft Word.

Yeah, we are all used to getting "free" software, but it costs a lot of money to produce and test something like this. And it's not some word game where if it fails, who cares.

Very interesting.

And at some point when you buy a DC, how much really cost the Hardware, Firmware and DC Phone desktop software? There is research and development that we pay, then components, but I’m starting to think that we also pay for the software inside the price. So is not a big deal to pay a subscription as long it really excels and worth the money we pay, otherwise another software developer can take advantage that the only need to focus in the app and forget about the device hardware and firmware.

Time
Will tell

 

[Mlindie4]

Looking forward to hearing your impressions! When are you heading to Cozumel?

October 7th

 

[hazmat]

October 7th

Nice. I hope the Oceanic+ watch app is out in time.

 

[KenGordon]

I have ordered one but it will be weeks before I see it.

I can think of a dozen ways I can improve on a traditional dive computer with a thing like this. I hope the 40m limit is just a Oceanic/Lawyer thing and the APIs will carry on reporting depths to something a bit more substantial but even so it will do for quite a lots of dives.

Given the pushback against subscriptions what would people pay for software equivalent to the various typical DCs, eg

Single gas, Nitrox, no deco (this may be free with Oceanic TBC)
Single gas, Nitrox, deco
Back gas plus a deco gas
Back gas plus multiple deco gases
Trimix
CCR air dil
CCR trimix

I already pay subscriptions for stuff like Navionics charts and used to for car navigation before Apple and Google killed that market off…

 

[scubadada]

I have been communicating with Oceanic Technical Assistance and Care. They don't appear totally up to speed and there is no owner's manual, yet. So, if you go below 40 m you get a warning, sounds like if you ascend, the computer may act normally. If you go below 44 m, you get a warning, not sure it gives normal data on ascent, and you are locked out, "requires manual unlocking"

I'm sure this would be fine for many divers

 

[drrich2]

Given the pushback against subscriptions what would people pay for software equivalent to the various typical DCs, eg

No more than $50, preferably $30 or less. If you look at financial software packages similar to Quicken (I switched to CheckBook Pro on the Mac because Quicken went to a subscription model), that seems to my untrained eye a very rough comparator.

I use a subscription for my anti-virus/malware software, as I understanding ongoing updates of new definitions are needful. I do not use it for my word processor program, as I don't need frequent intermittent updates. I buy a new version once every several years, when the accumulated features justify the expense.

Here's a question those considering the subscription route ought to ask. Let's say you subscribe this year, go on a trip, download and log 50 dives for the year, then take a couple years off diving as you just had a kid or some such. Your subscription expires. Can you still access and work with/edit your dive log?

 

[hazmat]

Here's a question those considering the subscription route ought to ask. Let's say you subscribe this year, go on a trip, download and log 50 dives for the year, then take a couple years off diving as you just had a kid or some such. Your subscription expires. Can you still access and work with/edit your dive log?

Yes. The chart says you have access to all functionality besides the actual dive computer for dives.

 

[Mr. Dooley]

While clearly not aimed at technical divers, I'm sort of curious what effect this could have on Perdix sales. I see a contingent of recreational divers who dive Perdix just because they like them, but are unlikely to use its capabilities for mixed gas / Trimix / rebreather diving.