Cobalt troubles

[john0767]

Hey guys, I'm having button issues again with my Cobalt after it just came back from Atomic 2 months ago for the same problem.
I'm leaving on Saturday for a week of dives on the Island of Saba which doesn't have much support on the island. So I'm thinking I should have a backup computer.

My biggest question is with the Cobalt 2, has it become more reliable or are there still problems?
And if they are still having problems what other computer should I be looking at?

Thank you in advance.

 

[RonR]

John,

Sorry you are seeing this- can you describe it and say which button? Are you having difficulty registering button presses, or is it not working at all?
The buttons on the Cobalt are activated by magnets in the rubbery keypad. There are no penetrations of the housing, it's all done by the magnetic force through the case. Some Cobalts, particularly early production, had issues with the plastic casing around these tiny magnets not being completely sealed, causing rusting. The symptoms are usually a gradual loss of function. The Cobalt 2 (Actually Cobalt 1's for quite a while as well) is using a superior sealing material, and we have not seen this with more recent keypads. If you just got it back from Atomic this should not be the issue. It's very rare for the actual internal switches to have a problem.

I'm going to PM you with some hints for checking to see if you need a different strength magnet. Occasionally a particular switch seems to require a slightly stronger or weaker magnet- Atomic has them in several strengths.

It's not likely that this indicates any problem with the Cobalt internally, and Atomic should be able to get you new magnets or a keypad before your trip if needed. This should be a very easy problem to solve.

Ron

 

[john0767]

Ron it's the select button that is not working at all,before it was the down button. And if I place a magnet next to the select button it will work.

 

[RonR]

That would indicate a problem with a weak magnet, something that should be very easy to correct.

Ron