New Aqua Lung i750tc Dive Computer

[Automan]

I just got back from my Red Sea trip where I managed to catch a bad cold so only managed 13 dives.

My new toy seemed to work pretty well with tank transmitter always reading okay but at safety stop levels the display was difficult to read unless shaded (unit at default brightness settings) but at night, deep or in wrecks it is really good.

I even managed to download my dives via BT to my Asus Android 6 tablet.

Back home today, I noted they had upgraded the wondeful Android App which refused to update with error 504.

I gave up and deleted it and installed again with no issue.

Time then to transfer my 13 dives again which it did but the computer then would only say...

"WAIT FOR BEEP THEN ACTIVATE"

No mention of this in the manual and I tried every key combination. Unit had done 14hours of operation.

Thus emailed Aqualung UK and got a response in under 1 hour....

I have been informed if this displays the battery needs changing. And below is more information regarding the battery type and power consumption.

If you do change the battery and it still displays the same please let me know.

Q – Which battery can I use on the i750TC?
A - In principle you can use any CR2 to cell with 750mAH.

The most power consumption on the i750TC is the OLED (display). Therefore, it will depend on brightness and dim levels setting. User can optimize and extended their battery life by taking advantage of lower his/her brightness level and dim levels setting. One cell can last from 17 hours to 35 hours depend on the display brightness and dim levels.

Anyway, during last dive I was still getting a full battery symbol but changing the battery has restored operation and that message now can be acknowledged.

The old battery was at 2.80 volts

The provided CR2's are Panasonic Industrial Lithium CR15H270 with a 850mAH capacity.

 

[Padawan no1]

I had exactly the same thing happen to mine whilst I was out diving in Goa last week.

No idea how to clear the message, scoured the online manual and eventually I contacted Aqualung UK. Got the same message back about changing the battery.
Battery changed and all ok now.

I've got >9 hours of logged dives on mine so I'm a tad concerned about battery usage.

Time will tell I guess.

 

[stuartv]

The AL i750 appears to be the same computer as the Aeris A300CS OLED and the Oceanic VTX - except they took the DSAT algorithm out of the AL version. All 3, made by PPS.

The Aeris and Oceanic have long had a reputation for really short battery life and being hard to read in bright light conditions.

What y'all are experiencing seems to be pretty standard for that computer.

 

[pnwbred]

Does anyone know if this computer tracks/logs your compass headings and distance? Not seeing anything in the manual. Do any dive computers?

 

[Macan]

The Aeris and Oceanic have long had a reputation for really short battery life and being hard to read in bright light conditions.

stuartv, is this also true for the Oceanic Atom 3.1? Also, could you share you're experiences with the Atom in terms of:

1. Battery life, how many dives before you had to change it out? Easy change?

2. Deco diving: The marketing materials of the Atom indicates its a multigas computer capable of 3 gas switches up to 100% O2. I know its algorithm is DSAT or PZ+ with no GF. At its most liberal setting, how well will the Atom keep up (as a Backup DC) with a Shearwater (Primary DC) with the Shearwater running 40/70 GF on a deco dive?

3. Can you share one Oceanic transmitter with a Perdix AI and an Atom both used on the same dive?

 

[stuartv]

stuartv, is this also true for the Oceanic Atom 3.1? Also, could you share you're experiences with the Atom in terms of:

1. Battery life, how many dives before you had to change it out? Easy change?

2. Deco diving: The marketing materials of the Atom indicates its a multigas computer capable of 3 gas switches up to 100% O2. I know its algorithm is DSAT or PZ+ with no GF. At its most liberal setting, how well will the Atom keep up (as a Backup DC) with a Shearwater (Primary DC) with the Shearwater running 40/70 GF on a deco dive?

3. Can you share one Oceanic transmitter with a Perdix AI and an Atom both used on the same dive?

I have the Atom 3.0. The only difference between the 3.0 and 3.1 is that the 3.0 has the Buddy Check Feature and the 3.1 does not. Oceanic had to remove that feature because of a patent infringement lawsuit.

What I said about short battery life and being hard to read in bright light only applies to those OLED screen computer models - not to the LCD screens like the Atom, Geo, VT, etc..

I've had the Atom for a bit over 2 years and have done about 120 dives with it (not counting pool sessions). I have changed the battery 2 times. That is more often than I would have expected. But, when I look back it may because I have had a tendency to put it in a bathtub full of water to soak with my other gear and left it in there overnight. If that was causing it to stay in Dive mode, that would probably eat up the battery faster. Also, it was New Old Stock when I bought it, so I'm not sure how old the original battery was. The last battery change was in October, so, for me, the batteries have been lasting almost 1 year. And, yes, the battery is very easy to change, if you don't lose the little tool that comes with it. Batteries are easy to find at a local drug store or grocery store (in the U.S., anyway).

I have taken the Atom on deco dives, but I have never done a gas switch with it. I actually did attempt it once, but, to be honest, in the moment, I couldn't figure out how to do the switch and it wasn't really important, as it was my backup, so I messed with it for a few seconds and then moved on, having already done the gas switch on my primary computer. Generally, the Atom has cleared deco before surfacing, even though I did not do a gas switch on it, but did actually switch to 80% deco gas and did a gas switch on my primary computer. Only on one deco dive did it not clear and lock me into Gauge mode. As most people would use the Atom in Gauge mode on a deco dive anyway, that did not concern me.

I have always run the Atom using the DSAT algorithm with no Conservatism Factor setting - i.e. at its most liberal. With these settings, it is roughly equivalent (very roughly) to using Buhlmann with GF settings of 95/95. I would absolutely NOT use it as a primary deco computer. I have used it as a backup on the basis that I was not diving more than 2 days in a row and not more than 2 dives per day. And at most, one deco dive per day. With all those caveats, if my primary computer had died, I would have followed the Atom's deco ascent plan (checking it against the plan written in my wet notes) and leaving the Atom set to my back gas mix while actually switching to my deco gas at the appropriate depth.

Bottom line on that: I would NOT recommend to plan to use the Atom for deco dives involving a gas switch. At least, not as anything more than a Gauge Mode bottom timer. And, really, I would not recommend to plan to use it for deco dives even if you are not doing a gas switch. When it comes to scuba diving, my personal opinion is that it is best to use tools that are intended for the job and the Atom is just not intended to be used as a deco computer - even though it is programmed to let you, if you need to. If I really wanted to do a deco dive, and all I had was the Atom, well, I just wouldn't do it. I would not do a deco dive with only one device for tracking time and depth. If I had the Atom and some other bottom timer, I would plan it on my desktop computer, use that to write out a plan in my wet notes, and use the bottom in Gauge Mode as a bottom timer.

And yes, you can have as many computers as you want, all reading the same Oceanic transmitter. It's just like any radio broadcast device. You can have as many radio receivers as you want picking up its transmissions.

 

[scubadada]

stuartv, is this also true for the Oceanic Atom 3.1? Also, could you share you're experiences with the Atom in terms of:

1. Battery life, how many dives before you had to change it out? Easy change?

2. Deco diving: The marketing materials of the Atom indicates its a multigas computer capable of 3 gas switches up to 100% O2. I know its algorithm is DSAT or PZ+ with no GF. At its most liberal setting, how well will the Atom keep up (as a Backup DC) with a Shearwater (Primary DC) with the Shearwater running 40/70 GF on a deco dive?

3. Can you share one Oceanic transmitter with a Perdix AI and an Atom both used on the same dive?

1. I have a Geo2, same as the Atom but without air integration. I have had it for 5 1/2 years, 650 dives. I'm on my third battery. The manual says the CR2430 battery should last 1 year or 300 dives at 2 dives/day. I also have a VT 3, 6 1/2 years old, 830 dives, I'm on my 4th battery. The CR2450 has the same predicted lifespan. The batteries are extremely easy to change, the Geo2 even easier than the VT3. It's my impression that the short battery life pertains to the newer Pelagic Pressure Systems models A300CS, VTX and i750TC.

2. I have been diving the DSAT decompression algorithm since 2002, about 1250 dives. I am not a technical diver and do light deco, less than 15 minutes, on only about 5% of my dives. The DSAT algorithm was not designed for technical diving, PZ+ may be more appropriate for deco, I have never used it. I now dive a Dive Rite Nitek Q as a backup to my VT3 to gain experience with Buhlmann and GFs. Though it is not perfect, the best match for DSAT is a GF hi of around 95 for NDL dives. The Atom actually has 4 algorithm settings, from most liberal to most conservative DSAT, PZ+, DSAT with conservatism, PZ+ with conservatism. I would imagine that one of the most conservative settings would be best match for 40/70

3. I believe you can use a Perdix and an Atom with a single transmitter, set both computers to the same serial number.

@stuartv can be of more assistance to you regarding your deco questions

Edit, of course, Stuart replied while I was busy typing

 

[Automan]

New firmware out for the i750tc

FIRMWARE UPDATE RELEASE DETAILS

i750TC
DIVE COMPUTER
to version 1C
(from any previous version)

EXPLANATION
In response to input received from staff and users of the i750TC, Aqua Lung has corrected or modified the following items to improve the i750TC’s operation:

- This update improves upon power management and the cold temperature compensation of the battery life indicator.

UPDATE PROCESS
You can update your i750TC firmware (operating software) to newly released revision 1C by following the “How to Update Firmware to a Dive Computer” instructions in the DiverLog software. There is no need to return the unit to Aqua Lung.

DiverLog is available on the Diverlog web site.
Should you have any questions, please contact your Authorized Aqua Lung Dealer.
Doc. No. 12-5414-r01 (2/2/17)