just discovering the problem with suunto transmitters

[Belzelbub]

Whilst the iPhone keyboard was soft, the user interface was so intuitive that it was a joy to use; literally "press the button to go 'Home'" was the only instruction you needed.

Speaking of good interfaces.

My buddy currently uses a Cressi Michelangelo dive computer. Recently, he commented how the one button interface was a pain to work with. He asked me if changing gasses was easy on my Shearwater. I handed him my powered off Perdix and said, “You tell me.” The only instructions I gave him were that you need to hold both buttons to turn it on, and after that it was just single button presses. I think it may have taken him around 20 second to find the appropriate menu and change the gas.

 

[Wibble]

Speaking of good interfaces.

My buddy currently uses a Cressi Michelangeol dive computer. Recently, he commented how the one button interface was a pain to work with. He asked me if changing gasses was easy on my Shearwater. I handed him my powered off Perdix and said, “You tell me.” The only instructions I gave him were that you need to hold both buttons to turn it on, and after that it was just single button presses. I think it may have taken him around 20 second to find the appropriate menu and change the gas.

Day one with my Perdix was like that. The Suunto D9tx has four buttons with short and long presses; a thoroughly miserable user experience. The Perdix replacement is such a joy to use, especially underwater when idiot brain takes over.

Now on a rebreather, I’ve three Shearwater computers (Nerd, Petrel and backup Perdix) all with the same two-button user interfaces despite each computer having very different functionality.

 

[Diverspoint]

Absolutely correct. Yes, you do have to remove the transmitter from the 1st stage in order to get to the screws in the base. And the metal screws do go directly into the plastic cover. That's why I said in an earlier post that you have to be very careful taking the screws out and then especially so in replacing them. If you overtighten them and strip out the threads in the cover, you are screwed (pun intended.)

That's the main reason I switched to a computer that uses the Pelagic transmitter. Leave it attached to the 1st stage, unscrew the top battery cover, remove and replace the battery, replace the cap after greasing or replacing the o-ring. Much simpler operation. As I said previously, I now use an Oceanic OCi which alerts me when the computer battery is getting low. And although it doesn't actively monitor the battery in the transmitter, I can go into the menu and run a check on both it and the DC batteries.

I know the reply is very late, but I have my transmitter on a short hose, so it does not break off when lifting the gear.

And I can easily change the battery, no removing the transmitter