Need suggestions about budget dive computer

[scubadada]

I don't own a computer. I don't even have my OW cert yet (1 month to my class). But, I have been doing a LOT of reading on computers, trying to decide what to get for myself.

And you've written more than those of us who have been diving computers for 25 years. You must have stayed at a Holiday Inn? Yes, I'm the same one who inquired about the status of your OCD

Good diving, once you get certified

 

[doctormike]

And you've written more than those of us who have been diving computers for 25 years

Hah! Gotta buy the right magic bracelet so that you get the most out of your diving!

 

[993guy]

Don't know if OP has access to Scuba Diving Magazine but the Oct/Nov 2014 issue has ScubaLab reviews on 12 new comps.

Personally I'm looking for an inexpensive wrist comp to use as a backup.

I believe the Hollis DG03 is almost the same as the Veo 3.0 except is only has the buhlman algorithm and allows an additional gas. But for whatever reason, it can be found a lot quicker.

https://www.divegearexpress.com/computers/dg03.shtml

I have one but I only use it i gauge mode.

This looks interesting, thanks.

 

[C Dub]

Can't comment on some on your list, but I chose the DG03 from dive gear express. Good value, and works well in gauge mode, should you need that down the road.

 

[stuartv]

Give me a break with the "Suunto is too conservative" business. Until you have actually dived it and felt that it impacted the enjoyment of your dive, don't comment. Many people have never run up against a Suunto making their dives less enjoyable. Others have. It depends on what your dives are like and whether staying down another 5, 10, 20 minutes or whatever would have made your happier. It is not something you can appreciate from reading on the Internet. I regularly dive for an hour on my Suunto and am usually not displeased to leave the water at that time. I sometimes get chilly or thirsty or bored or whatever before I run out of no-deco time. I will also add that some people might find comfort in the belief that the Suunto RGBM algorithm might keep them safer under some circumstance, and it is not my place to remind them there really isn't any data that would support such a belief.

Seriously?!? You think that's it inappropriate to have an objective discussion about how different computers calculate NDLs unless the person doing the talking has actually used those computers?!?!

Also, I didn't say that Suunto is "too conservative". I said it's MORE conservative than other computers. Saying it is "too" conservative is a personal judgment that each person has to make for themselves. In that vein, I also said that I have decided for myself that I want a computer that is less conservative. If I'm wrong about it being more conservative than other computers, please elaborate.

It's nice that yours works fine for you. But, do you think that what works for you should be taken by everyone else to mean that it should be just fine for them, too? If it's not just fine for them, do you think that means that they should like or lump it (because it's good enough for you)? Or should they be able to come to a place like these forums and get objective information that they can use to decide for themselves what will work best for them?

I happened to read this thread before I ever posted anything on this board:

http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/co...zers/305374-so-you-want-buy-new-computer.html

The very first post offers a handy table comparing different computers. Since I'm just going for OW certification, I mostly just looked at dive times for 60'. 57 minutes for Oceanic and some others. "40 - 48" minutes for Suunto (the most conservative in the chart). That seems pretty significant, to me. But, obviously, what do I know? I'm just an ignorant newb, right? Except that I have read up on a number of places around Florida, the Caribbean, and other places, where I think I'd like to dive someday. And many of those will offer depths of 60' or more. I intend to work towards Advanced and Deep certs as soon as I finish OW so that I can be ready to do those deeper dives when the opportunity comes along.

We are obviously different on this. I like my equipment (in whatever activity I'm engaged) to be safe (as a first priority) and then be the least restrictive that it can be. I have not seen a single post anywhere that accused the Oceanic, Sherwood, etc., algorithms of being unsafely aggressive. I.e. they seem, by all accounts, to be safe. Comparing the numbers to the USN and NOAA dive tables, the Oceanic numbers are generally a fair bit more conservative. And the data shows (at least, the data in that one chart, plus some other places I looked) that they are less restrictive than Suunto. Personally, maximizing time actually DIVING (SAFELY) is my number one priority in choosing a computer. I want to come up when I am ready. Not because my computer has decided to make me based on a calculation that yields a result that is WAY less than what NOAA or even PADI tables would dictate.

Now, I do realize that many will say that the NDLs allowed on second and subsequent dives is what is really important. And if I could find a chart like the one I linked, that compared these same computers for repetitive dives, I would love to see it and I would post it. Maybe what "they" say about Suunto would be revealed to be totally unfounded when you look at NDLs on repetitive dives. I don't know.

You don't do dives where you are limited by your Suunto, but how can you feel like you're doing anyone a good service to make blanket statements rejecting an objective discussion of how the different computers calculate NDLs while at the same time offering your own anecdotes about how the Suunto algorithm is totally adequate, implying that everyone else should be just fine with?

And you've written more than those of us who have been diving computers for 25 years. You must have stayed at a Holiday Inn? Yes, I'm the same one who inquired about the status of your OCD

Good diving, once you get certified

And? Did I post something that was incorrect? If I did, I hope someone will correct me. I may not have any dive experience, but I am dang good at research. Particularly product research. The OP was regarding shopping for a product. I tried to be helpful - by offering factual data - not anecdotes and personal judgments based on things that are not relevant to the OP. I'm seriously just trying to be helpful. What am I doing wrong?

And, thanks! My OW class was supposed to start next week, but some others in my group had scheduling issues, so now we're not starting until late October. The wait is killing me!

 

[Lorenzoid]

Stuart, I will acknowledge you didn't explicitly say "too conservative." What you said was:

The Suuntos use a very conservative algorithm compared to all the other brands of computers. I have decided to avoid any Suunto for this reason and for having read too many reports of problems with reliability and with uncaring customer service. But mainly for the algorithm. If I decide I'm always going to get out when my NDL gets down to, say 10 or 20 minutes, I would rather have a computer that lets me stay down longer and still get out with the level of conservatism that I choose. From what I have read, the Oceanic and Sherwood computers seem to allow for the most bottom time. And most of the Oceanic have a choice of 2 algorithms, one of which is more conservative than the other. And with either, you can still add in a "conservative factor" to make it even more conservative, if you want.

I think your comment could be read as implying it, though. I think you do the OP a disservice by implying you have any idea what conservatism may or may not do for your diving experience or for the OP's when you have hardly had a dive in your life. Hey, if you want even less conservatism than, say, the Oceanic or Sherwood you mention, get a tech computer that you can adjust away to your heart's content. You can set the limits based on what you believe is safe. You can even ignore its warning without it locking you out. Or just use dive tables and then push yourself to the no-decompression limit--or even beyond, if you believe that the recreational tables already have significant conservatism built in as many people do. There's no bright line between safe and not safe, as I know you are aware. It has been said that an NDL is an attempt to draw a straight line through a fuzzy gray area. But you've probably come across that in your reading.

It's difficult to fairly compare conservativeness among computers, since Suunto's algorithm is especially sensitive to factors that others may not be, such as repetitive dives over multiple days, fast ascents, and later dives deeper than earlier dives. These are things that apparently Suunto's RGBM algorithm thinks promote bubble growth. When I bought my Suunto, I thought the idea of an algorithm that modeled bubbles was pretty neat. I have no reason to believe it kept me safer than another model would have, but it appealed to me at the time.

Your choice to avoid Suunto is based on your own reasoning, based on what you believe are your circumstances, but your post came off as sounding like you were making an argument. Despite what you may glean from reading Scubaboard--a vocal minority of the diving population--many people all over the world are perfectly content with their Suuntos. For whatever reason, it is a VERY popular brand. On just about every dive trip I've been on, somebody on the boat has a Suunto. If I ask them how they like their Suunto, most say they like it just fine. I've done more than one follow-the-divemaster dives where the divemaster had a Suunto. I don't know what the OP's situation is--whether he does a lot of diving independently or whether it's mostly at dive resorts with a divemaster leading the dive or something else--but a lot of people do the kind of diving where it's time to surface when the divemaster says it is, or when the first person in the group to get low on air or no-deco time reaches that point.

By the way, I don't think my Suunto computer is all that. But it irks me to see people repeating this lore about the algorithm being so off-the-charts conservative when "conservative" can only be judged relative to one's diving. I would give weight to the opinions of people who have actually dived Suuntos and included an explanation of what kind of dive they were doing when the Suunto said it was time to ascend and why they felt that was a problem for them. Then, if I thought my circumstances and goals might be similar to theirs, I might be inclined to shun Suunto. If my understanding is correct, you have not dived any computer. I suspect that most new divers think they are going to do exceptionally long dives and/or don't like the thought of a computer barking at them to end it any sooner than they believe is "long enough," but it doesn't always work out that way for a variety of reasons. How is your air consumption, by the way? Oh, you don't know yet. My wife's is very high even though she's been diving for around seven years, and she invariably will get low on air before her Suunto indicates she's approaching no-deco limits. So her dives are limited by her tank size, not NDLs.

Okay, I'm done. It's Friday afternoon and approaching beer-thirty here. Enjoy diving.

 

[Rich Keller]

This is about as cheap as you can get but how well it works will be up to you.

Aqua Water Proof Dive Tables 6" X 8" (15.2 cm x 20.3 cm) at LeisurePro

 

[993guy]

This is about as cheap as you can get but how well it works will be up to you.

Aqua Water Proof Dive Tables 6" X 8" (15.2 cm x 20.3 cm) at LeisurePro

I couldn't go that route unless they came with reading glasses......

 

[diver 85]

And you've written more than those of us who have been diving computers for 25 years. You must have stayed at a Holiday Inn? Yes, I'm the same one who inquired about the status of your OCD

Good diving, once you get certified

.....word on the street is Expresses are better..

 

[Centrals]

We are obviously different on this. I like my equipment (in whatever activity I'm engaged) to be safe (as a first priority) and then be the least restrictive that it can be. I have not seen a single post anywhere that accused the Oceanic, Sherwood, etc., algorithms of being unsafely aggressive. I.e. they seem, by all accounts, to be safe. Comparing the numbers to the USN and NOAA dive tables, the Oceanic numbers are generally a fair bit more conservative. And the data shows (at least, the data in that one chart, plus some other places I looked) that they are less restrictive than Suunto. Personally, maximizing time actually DIVING (SAFELY) is my number one priority in choosing a computer. I want to come up when I am ready. Not because my computer has decided to make me based on a calculation that yields a result that is WAY less than what NOAA or even PADI tables would dictate.

I have yet to come across any dive computer that will guarantee you absolute SAFETY ie. NOT getting bent.
"Maximizing time"!!! Now you talking!
BTW, I don't use Suunto or any "safe" computers that you have named. Mine is two 17/18 yr old Uwatec Aladin and maximizing dive time is never an issue as I believe safety come first.
Hope you have a long and safe journey in diving.