New Teric and nitpicking

[BoltSnap]

That is true - It does not. However, that is not a feature I personally need as I normally have my phone with me and can easily grab GPS coordinates if needed. In fact, I do it all the time on dive boats - I add the site and capture the GPS coordinates in Dive Log and then select that site after I bluetooth the dive to Dive Log. Works great!

The mobile phone doesn't do me any good when I am in the water 500 meters away from shore (after doing a surface swim) and trying to pin point my descent and ascent/exit point. Having mobile phone on the boat and messing with it to record the information on the spot isn't very practical for me. I have the Ratio iX3M computer and it has a builtin GPS that works great. It will be great if a wristwatch version has the GPS feature just like the Garmine appears to have.

I am speaking about my own needs and the type of diving I do.

 

[Joneill]

The mobile phone doesn't do me any good when I am in the water 500 meters away from shore (after doing a surface swim) and trying to pin point my descent and ascent/exit point. Having mobile phone on the boat and messing with it to record the information on the spot isn't very practical for me. I have the Ratio iX3M computer and it has a builtin GPS that works great. It will be great if a wristwatch version has the GPS feature just like the Garmine appears to have.

I am speaking about my own needs and the type of diving I do.

Fair enough, as was I!

 

[Joneill]

Reasons I like the Teric better:

- form factor. You may or may not know that I owned a Petrel 2 for a time, then got a Seabear H3. I dived them both long enough to determine that I really did not like the brick form factor. I sold the Petrel at a non-trivial loss.

When the Perdix AI came out, I bought one because I was willing to live with the form factor in order to have the AI. Now, I don't have to live with that brick any more, in order to have the Shearwater features and quality - and AI.

- screen is better/brighter (on the Teric, vs the Perdix).

- the perimeter compass on the Teric is awesome and the Perdix does not have it.

- the 4 buttons make navigation easier. It's not a huge deal, but it is easier. Many's the time I have scrolled right past the option I wanted on my Perdix and had to go all the way back around again.

- The Teric battery definitely lasts long enough to not need to charge them both on the same day - unless I royally screw up, of course. So, only need to take one charger. The same charger, in fact, that I would take anyway, to charge my phone.

- The Teric supports a display mode that has 4 rows of data on the screen, instead of just 3, if you care to use it (and your eyes are not too old to read it). I normally wear reading glasses, but I have my Teric configured for Standard (i.e. 4 rows, vs Big, which is 3 rows) and I can read it without any gauge reader lenses. And the 3rd/4th row (depending on whether you use Big or Standard view), can still be setup for up to 3 pieces of data, which the user can choose.

- I have had issues with the buttons on my Perdix being activated inadvertently. I.e. by my dryglove rings or something else. I personally know 2 people who have told me that they had a gas switch performed on their Petrel/Perdix without them knowing it, because of accidental button presses. IIRC, I posted this before and at least one other SB member posted that they had had the same thing happen to them.

I am much more confident in the Teric to not have inadvertent button presses, versus the Perdix.

- The Teric has a new feature called "Tag Log" where you can add text tags to your log during a dive. E.g. "waypoint", or "Danger". There's a menu of choices. When you download and view your logged dive's profile, you can see at what point in the dive you were and what tag you logged. The Perdix does not have this feature. It's a minor thing, but does seem like it could be somewhat useful on occasion.

- I would not normally wear the Teric as a watch. But, on a dive trip, I *would* leave my smartwatch at home and wear the Teric as a watch during the trip - any time that I want to have a wristwatch on, anyway - which is admittedly not very often.

- I work for a shop that is a Shearwater dealer. I don't know for sure yet, but I think I will be able to buy a Teric and sell my Perdix AI such that my net out-of-pocket is very low, if anything.

- To me, especially for technical diving, a backup computer is like a backup reg. I want the same thing for my backup as for my primary. If I end up NEEDING it, why would I want something that is any less "good" than my primary? If I'm on a dive trip and my primary computer dies, I'd rather fall back to using another Teric for the rest of the trip than fall back on using a Perdix. For all the reasons already given.



I don't mind if somebody asks why I choose to spend my money a certain way. Snark is not really appreciated, but I'll do unto others as I'd like them to do unto me. In this case meaning give the benefit of the doubt and take the comments and questions at face value.



Shearwater changed from the AMOLED screen on the Predator to the LCD screen on the Petrel because they could not get the AMOLED screen anymore (in that size/resolution). At least, that is my understanding. I suspect that that supply issue may still be the same. So, I do not personally expect to see a replacement for the Perdix that goes back to AMOLED.

I also don't expect to see a Perdix replacement using a rechargeable battery. If the computer is the size of a Perdix, may as well preserve the option to use an AA - and the ability for the user to use rechargeable AAs if they want to.



True, but as the Teric is already supported by Subsurface and Subsurface-mobile, one can achieve the same end by simply using Subsurface-mobile, taking your smartphone on the boat with you, and running the Subsurface Location service on your phone while you're at sea. When you download the log from the Teric, Subsurface can pull your GPS coordinates from the location service data, to match up date/times with your dive log and yield a Subsurface dive log that has your GPS data. No need to pay extra to have GPS hardware incorporated into the dive computer itself.

All good points - I do suspect that AMOLED screens are now more abundant and available in more sizes than when the Predator switched to LCD, so I do think the updated Perdix will be AMOLED - time will tell (as with a rechargeable battery as well).

 

[KenGordon]

Forums are to discuss things - but those things should not be questioning how someone else chooses to spend THEIR MONEY (and in a snarky way)!

I think I am making a serious point. These computers are very expensive. Aqualung will sell you a watch computer or a Bluetooth computer for a quarter the price. Then you can do 99% of the dives people will with one of these, including the dives in Scapa with multiple gases.

 

[KenGordon]

- the 4 buttons make navigation easier. It's not a huge deal, but it is easier. Many's the time I have scrolled right past the option I wanted on my Perdix and had to go all the way back around again.

This problem is quite annoying on the Perdix/Petrel. It is what you get with a two button interface, a machine with more buttons but otherwise like a Perdix would seem like an improvement. (I think it is called an Eon though )

screen is better/brighter (on the Teric, vs the Perdix).

Is it really bigger?

 

[scubadada]

I think I am making a serious point. These computers are very expensive. Aqualung will sell you a watch computer or a Bluetooth computer for a quarter the price. Then you can do 99% of the dives people will with one of these, including the dives in Scapa with multiple gases.

As long as you are happy with the PZ+ deco algorithm

 

[Joneill]

This problem is quite annoying on the Perdix/Petrel. It is what you get with a two button interface, a machine with more buttons but otherwise like a Perdix would seem like an improvement. (I think it is called an Eon though )



Is it really bigger?

Not bigger - but better. It has better color, way better contrast (inky black background) and better off axis viewing. It's a bigger difference in person than this picture shows (not that the Perdix is bad):

 

[tridacna]

I have both. Can't say there's ever been a situation when I've been unable to see the Perdix perfectly well. The Teric is definitely brighter but I think that we're starting to get anal about this. After many years using an Orca Edge and a Decobrain, it's tough to see people arguing the optical appearance of either of these two.

 

[Jay]

Please... the car analogy was brought into the discussion as someone suggested that buying a Teric was akin to buying an expensive car and suggesting that it is mainly to impress -

Not quite. I was trying to say premium brands command a premium for a reason and as you get up there (spending $) their marginal utility/value diminishes at an increasing rate. Not to say it's not worth it, and nothing about attempting to impress.

The posts after that were interpreted through a different lens.

 

[drrich2]

These computers are very expensive. Aqualung will sell you a watch computer or a Bluetooth computer for a quarter the price.

I've got a little Teric envy; the price is off-putting because I don't need one now. You do raise a point I see in threads by newbies looking for a dive computer; what do you get for incremental rises in cost? Basic computer - acts as a depth gauge with NDL, keeping track of nitrogen dive-to-dive, and these days probably handles nitrox. In the tradition of 'would you like fries with that,' there's a menu of added cost add-ons:

1.) Air-integrated, logs your start & end pressures, & probably downloads your dive log to your computer (maybe phone).
2.) Intuitive graphic interface vs. the arbitrary weird button sequences ala digital watch programing.
3.) Compact size (e.g.: watch vs. console).
4.) Strong reputation for quality and durability (Shearwater).
5.) Optional technical diving capability.
6.) Wireless interface to phone or desktop computer.
7.) Customizability (e.g.: gradient factor adjustability). Some computers offer choice of algorithm.
8.) Battery life, rechargeable vs. changeable batteries, et...

If any newbies read this thread, features cost money. Deciding whether you stand to gain solid value for price is an individual decision. My Atomic Aquatics Cobalt 2 and Oceanic Worldwide VT3 both do the job, but the easy interface of the Cobalt 2 is a joy compared to the painful experience of changing things in the VT3.

I'm glad to see Stuart examining areas for potential improvement; at the surprising rate Shearwater has been turning out new computers the past several years, we might see some of this in a Teric 2.

Richard.