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I've used wireless/horseless air integrated computers since I got certified in the early 2000's. First was an Aeris/Oceanic computer, which was fine for it's day 20+ years ago. It used an MH8A transmitter which was mostly fine as well. I think the transmitter did really die once where I had...

Yeah this is the way we've done it both times we've gone there. You book from LAX/SFO/YVR/DFW all the way to Taveuni all on one ticket. They still weigh you and all luggage for weight distribution/limit purposes on the twin otter, but they will take all your checked bags from the overseas...

One of the most dangerous places in the world you can go as a woman, or LGBTQ. Oh and they burn witches. Once you're out on a liveaboard you're probably ok, but you still most likely need to transit through Port Moresby and possibly stay overnight there. And then there's the ethical...

Yeah you beat my edit, I forgot the extra $1000 for the charter flight. And yeah, that's no tips, probably no tax, off season, etc... In reality I'd expect the average normal-ish non-baller stay there to run more like $8-9K/week all-in.

A lot, comparable to the higher end liveaboards in the region. The cheapest rooms with all food, diving, and your flights from Bali included starts at around $6000 USD per week. Can easily be much more than that with room upgrades, peak season, private guides, or other addons. For reference...

Some of the newer regs out there are starting to standoff at least one or both of the HP ports a bit from the first stage to better fit transmitters without any clearance issues. I know my ScubaPro Mk17 Evo 2 sets that I just bought have this, and I think they're also angled a few degrees up or...

I'm not sure what point you're trying to make. Aren't you against feeding based on your previous posts? Also, "shark tourism" and "shark dives" almost always entail chumming, baiting, feeding, or all of the above. None of which is necessary to see sharks, just perhaps to see specific species...

I have no issue with this proposal, though they should really ban feeding for any purpose (including fishing) too. If you want to legally fish for a shark, do it without chum. But I'll take 50%. The legality doesn't change anything for people fishing for sharks, so I wouldn't expect that...

Never heard of garden island resort. Most folks here going to Taveuni are picking between Paradise and Taveuni Dive Resort. Paradise is significantly larger and closer to the water, while TDR is smaller and more private and family-like, and across the street from the beachfront (<5 min walk to...

Any decently powerful strobes like the DS165 or better will throw adequate light on large subjects through clear water up to 8-10 feet or more, depending on settings and conditions. For stills at least. I wouldn't recommend going diving with one strobe and one video light on all the time. You...

I have all my images on an SSD hard drive in my PC, and backed up to the cloud via idrive, a cloud backup provider which offers plans with a lot of storage (multiple TB). I think I pay $100/year for 5 TB, and it automatically backs up whatever I want from my PC in the folders/drives I...

Yeah, with Shearwater my experience is that the warranty doesn't matter. If something is amiss they'll take care of it quickly for you. They genuinely stand by and care about their products, which is rare these days.

I'm a photographer and I recently switched from my old Apollo Biofins (long heavy rubber split fins) to Apeks RK3's. I love the RK3's for a few key reasons: they're much shorter and easier to move around a crowded dive boat with underwater the shorter length makes it easier to move close to...

Reminds me of the protests that were going on when I went to Thailand on a dive trip in 2009. The trip was fine, just had to stay away from certain areas and I recall watching the PM declare a state of emergency as I was in the airport about to fly home. Hopefully the Indonesian government...

Yikes. I'm aware of the history and that things flare up from time to time between the independence movement and the government, but if things are heading legitimately downhill in West Papua it probably deserves its own thread to keep tabs on the news. Also, get trip insurance.

That looks to be basically an entire kit, with the exception of strobes as you mentioned and also possibly a port extension or two depending on your lens choices. Price seems fine, though not necessarily great for a second-hand housing. The useful big ticket items in there are the housing...

Agreed, there's a different subforum here for liveaboard operators to post deals and advertising. Regardless of whether or not this review is genuine, an operator has no business starting trip report threads in any of the regional subforums. How is there supposed to be discussion if the...

First obviously mask/fins/snorkel and an exposure suit of some sort (depending on where you dive). But after those, in order: 1. Computer. 2. BCD of some sort. Whether it's a jacket style, rear inflate, or a BP/W, a well-fitting BCD that suits your needs is critical. Ideally you want only...

Flathead is sold, still have the envoy. Updated post accordingly.

Didn't change anything. I got certified in cold water with a snug 7mm hood and didn't have an issue, and this thing is only 2mm without any sort of seal or tight pressure on your ears so it's a complete non-issue IMO. You shouldn't be concerned, and in any case it's cheap to try.