New Diver, First Computer

[Streydog]

The first rule of Scubaboard, If it doesn't say Shearwater...your'e gonna die, probably be ass raped by a nurse shark too...

My first computer was a Oceanic Proplus 2.x. I loved it an the air integration made me a better diver utilizing the air time remaining feature and adjusting my depth to finish with the group. If you can find a used ProPlus, it would save you some money to upgrade later.

I would still be using my Proplus but Santa brought me a Shearwater Perdix AI. There is no comparison between the two, but you definitely get what you pay for with Shearwater.

I'm not a fan of the puck...I have one as a back up and for students.

I am a fan of just about anything Deep 6 makes, but I dont know anything about their computers. I do not believe they have air integration though.

Good luck with your search,

Jay

I have a picture in my mind now of some guy with one yellow and one white fin, in a swim through with a nurse shark on top of him.

 

[broncobowsher]

Peregrine is a great choice.

I'm 98% with KWS. The wireless charging is nice. It is getting very common. The chargers are universal. A lot of the new cars have a wireless charging pad built in. I was a bit disappointed my new phone doesn't have that. So I will gloss over the easy to replace battery and accept an to charge (without proprietary cable/cord/dock).

The Peregrine gives you everything you need for a first computer and will grow with you as you advance. You won't outgrow it. If you do, you have advanced to the point that a new computer is a tiny fraction of what you are spending on gear.

 

[Kaydo]

I chose the Deep 6 Excursion because it was inexpensive and didn't overwhelm me with information. I get good basic info for my recreational dives. It also will serve as my backup computer whenever I decide to get the bigger/better/faster computer down the road. I'm just getting back into diving after a very long hiatus, so I want to make sure I really enjoy diving again before putting a ton of money into gear...

Is there a way to change the dive screen to make the deep 6 computer less cluttered?

 

[apenland01]

Not really a way to change the display that I know of, other than switching modes like gauge, etc. Does it seem cluttered to you? It pretty much gives me what I want to know on the home screen. Depth, NDL, ascent/descent rate, dive time and water temp. As a recreational diver, I don't need much else. It seems to be readable on the surface and I assume it will be slightly larger underwater with magnification. I haven't had it in the water yet until Sept 13.....

 

[scubadada]

If I was a new diver, having done my homework, I would buy a Peregrine

There has been a poll about buying a rec computer. After ease of use, good UI, and readability, the most important variable was the deco algorithm Single most important factor in choosing a recreational dive computer You can make a liberal computer more conservative, but you cannot make conservative computer more liberal. Other than perhaps DSAT, I would opt for Buhlmann. Three of the 4 computers you list run this algorithm.

If you are on a budget, you can't beat the D6 Excursion. One would like to hope the lack of apps and a NDL planner will be taken care of soon. It handles deco in an unusual way, of no concern to rec divers. The Mission One currently costs the same as the Peregrine, it was previously available at a discount. Some of the features of the M1 appear desirable, however, Shearwater has the best service record in the industry. Some of the features on the SW, such as SurfGF, have proved incredibly valuable to me.

Best of luck in your purchase

Good news, the D6 Excursion now has Android and iOS apps and a NDL planner Thoughts on Deep 6's new DC

 

[dmaziuk]

I would like to go as cheap as I can of course but I am willing to get up to $500

Do you have any idea how/where you're going to dive? E.g. in dark water back-lit screens become very handy very fast, and they pretty much don't exist in the sub-$500 bracket.

 

[eleniel]

I have a picture in my mind now of some guy with one yellow and one white fin, in a swim through with a nurse shark on top of him.

And those are split fins, yes? And a jacket BCD?

 

[GrafCanuck]

After a few years of renting a DW, and months of analyzing I finally went for a used Petrel 2. Love it. So much better than the basic Mares and Suuntos that you rent at the dive shop. Best scuba equipment investment I've made to-date. Knock on wood.

 

[ToneNQ]

Only complaint I've heard with the Peregrine is the lack of a compass. Not a big deal for me but the owner of it was a bit disappointed. Looking at the manual, if you have no intention of Trimix or CCR it really does do everything you could need. The Shearwater dive planner is excellent, and its going to work well for any sport or AN/DP technical diver.

If 18m dives are all you ever see yourself doing, every computer is going to track your NDL and depth. Air integration is great, an intuitive menu is essential, and also an easy way to extract and store your dive logs. I'd also suggest staying away from computers that like to lock you out if they disagree with your dive profile. I had a few fights with my Suunto on that basis, ended up just leaving it in the bag.

 

[loosenit2]

A dive computer is a tool. Decide what you need the tool to do. Are you a warm water rec diver, an aspiring tech diver? Start with the end in mind.