Garmin Descent MK1 - Wish List, Reliability and other MK1 related things.

[primus]

I initially created this thread because I was very optimistic about Garmin's innovation and future plans (e.g. re a MK2).

Would be very interested to hear from Descent owners here if they are still happy or not with the product, and if my thoughts are too (negatively) swayed by the Garmin Forums?

As recreational and free diver I'm still extremely satisfied with Descent MK1. I do not have any problems at all with it: the depth sensor works as expected (last used diving modes is activated automatically at 1.2 m depth), UW compass is fixed and I do not have any problems in other sports (more problems are experienced by users who upload some Watch Faces on Descent MK1).

Otherwise, except AI, which I do not even need (I always hire SCUBA equipment), there is not one "problem" that could not be solved by upgrading the FW, which is supposed to happen very soon, as announced by Garmin.

 

[The Chairman]

Add a Freedive mode.

Mine has a freedive mode. Not sure if "technical" enough. I never thought of a technical freedive before. ???

I also want it to be AI and compatible with the Pelagic sensors.

I love mine and am surprised at how durable the face and all of it are. I don't take it off to work on vehicles, tractors, mowers, the homestead and more. It's better than a Timex in that regard.

 

[Tassi Devil Diver]

Sooooo of those who have bought the Garmin Descent would now prefer to buy the Shearwater Teric.

Or of those who were going to buy the Descent are now going to get the Teric now that it has been released.

 

[Tienuts]

Sooooo of those who have bought the Garmin Descent would now prefer to buy the Shearwater Teric.

Or of those who were going to buy the Descent are now going to get the Teric now that it has been released.

Funny I was just thinking about this today. I own a Decent MK1.

As a CCR instructor, my whole world is Shearwater. Comparing the Decent to the Teric - the screen on the Teric looks way better, I like the wireless charging, and of course the constant PO2 deco, and AI. Shearwater's interface looks simpler as well, as I'd expect. The design is elegant, and I love Shearwater products so of course I really want one.

However I got the Decent MK1 as a fitness watch that I could also take diving - something none of my other fitness watches could do. Fitness is my primary application for this watch. I'll probably never actually use the Decent as a dive computer, I just put it in gauge mode when I dive with it. I also find the notifications from my phone useful, especially when driving or crewing a dive boat in the middle of a massive rain storm.

If down the road, Shearwater ever gets into the fitness game, then the Decent is history.

 

[Jay]

If down the road, Shearwater ever gets into the fitness game, then the Decent is history.

I think that would never happen, unless they sold out to a large corporate, and I also think that would never happen.

Perhaps my vibe re Descent from the Garmin forums was too negatively influenced. But, as per:

Sooooo of those who have bought the Garmin Descent would now prefer to buy the Shearwater Teric.

Or of those who were going to buy the Descent are now going to get the Teric now that it has been released.

It's a great poll question. Better make it an anonymous poll!!!

 

[ATJ]

Checking back in with the Garmin forums, I see a lot of non-diving related issues with the Descent, in general relatively poor client engagement, not too many happy users, and several cases of sensors being faulty.

I frequent the Garmin forum for the Descent and I don't think that is even remotely a fair representation of the Descent. There are few users, far fewer than I would expect. In most cases the only people that visit are to get a problem solved. Very few people will visit the forum just to say how happy they are with the Descent. There haven't been that many real problems. Yes, a couple of Descents with faulty sensors but I would expect that from any manufacturer.

In terms of diving related issues the only issues that I saw (from overviewing the pages of threads) was a Dive Time computation issue when an EOD (End of Dive) feature was used..

This is not a feature that can be used or not. There is an "End Dive Delay" which can be configured between 20 seconds and 10 minutes. It is always on. It is how long the watch waits before actually ending the dive. Most dive computers have such a feature so that if you surface mid-dive and then descend again it is all counted as one dive. The Garmin implementation is dumb - really dumb. The default delay is 1 minute and the Descent basically adds one minute the end of the dive - i.e. it is still recording depth (of zero) and temperature until the delay ends, making all dives 1 minute (or whatever the delay is set to) longer than they actually are.

Iand a compass issue.

Basically, while diving you could only use "True North" and not "Magnetic North". The issue was resolved with the latest firmware.

Would be very interested to hear from Descent owners here if they are still happy or not with the product, and if my thoughts are too (negatively) swayed by the Garmin Forums?

I am very happy with my Descent, not only as a dive computer, but also as an everyday watch and a fitness watch. I especially love that it logs the location of the dive entry and exit points.

I hope they fix the End Dive Delay issue soon. It's not a huge problem but is just annoying.

I wish it had AI but I knew going in that it didn't. My Perdix has AI so it's not a biggie.

 

[ATJ]

Sooooo of those who have bought the Garmin Descent would now prefer to buy the Shearwater Teric.

I am very happy with the Descent and basically the reason I got the Descent was for the features that the Teric doesn't have (not that I knew about the Teric at the time):

• GPS logging of entry and exit points
• Heart rate monitoring (when not diving)
• Activity tracking (Steps, etc.)
• Sports Activities (Running, Biking, etc.)

 

[primus]

I am very happy with the Descent and basically the reason I got the Descent was for the features that the Teric doesn't have (not that I knew about the Teric at the time):

• GPS logging of entry and exit points
• Heart rate monitoring (when not diving)
• Activity tracking (Steps, etc.)
• Sports Activities (Running, Biking, etc.)

I am also extremely happy with the Descent MK1!!!

Finally a watch that "can do everything": I can wear it all day, every day, with various Watch Faces is suitable for any occasion, it is usefull even at night, if you want to analyze sleeping, it is useful for all sports (inside, outside, in the water, in the air, ...), for GPS navigation with all the built-in maps, it is fully functional as an Smart Watch and finally, it is (almost) perfect Dive Computer. In short, the ultimate All-In-One wrist computer.

Of course, there are some problems and bugs, but they can be easily eliminated (with the exception of AI) with future FW upgrades.

 

[christopher paikai]

the mk 1 was going to be my choice but the fact that theres no AI swung me the other way. I wonder if shearwater will incorporate some of the other features I like with the garmin. gps and what not. Either way i ordered two terics for me and my girl.

 

[ATJ]

tI wonder if shearwater will incorporate some of the other features I like with the garmin. gps and what not.

They may, but you'd need to buy new devices to use them. Just the same as current Mk1 users would need to buy a new device (Mk2?) if Garmin decide to add AI in the future and they want that.