Rent a dive computer or buy cheap till I can afford a shearwater Petrel?

[Hatul]

Hey, thanks for the recommendation! Here is a quick link to the Stick-on Optic Lenses: Buy Trident Dive Optx 3242 with reviews at scuba.com

I've not had luck with the stick-on lenses. Tried a few ties and in time the lens would float off and be lost.

 

[Diver0001]

I've not had luck with the stick-on lenses. Tried a few ties and in time the lens would float off and be lost.

Yeah.... but I think the stick-on ones do have a purpose, but not as a permanent solution. For a permanent solution you need to get lenses actually glued into the mask.

As a stop-gap solution, though, it can really save the day. For example, I was in Egypt a couple of years ago and on day-1 I dropped my mask (flipped out of the box when I grabbed something else) and one of the lenses smashed when it hit the ground. These days I can hardly read my meters without glasses but I had no choice. I rented a mask so I could dive..... and believe me, I wished SO bad that I had brought a set of those stick-on optics with me.

R..

 

[Tigerman]

What I think is...
If you have trouble seeing your computer - what else are you missing down there?
Id much rather adress the overall vision than just getting a more easilly readable screen...

 

[chrpai]

What you really need are dive tables and a watch. If you really want to get fancy, download Vplanner and cut custom tables for each dive. At your frequency of diving, any computer in general, and a Petrel in particular, is over kill.

Are you really suggesting that someone who has made 18 dives in 5 years cut custom tables?

FWIW, the Hollis DG03 has a nice big display and is easy to use in the water. Otherwise I'd suggest looking for used.

 

[eelnoraa]

If you do 18 dives in 5 years, don't spend $1000 on a dive computer. I will also suggest Hollis HG03. It is quite big. It does air and nitrox. If you really advance to tech diving, it even has a gauge mode. For $250, if you take good care of it, when you sell it to upgrade, it will be cheaper than rental.

 

[Dr. Lecter]

Are you really suggesting that someone who has made 18 dives in 5 years cut custom tables?

So long as they're generating tables for purely NDL dives, why not? Being inexperienced means they're not ready to do more advanced dives, not that they're so ing stupid they can't conduct basic recreational dives using a computer-generated table and some timers/gauges. Or are you suggesting that the basic functions of v-planner and a dive slate are simply beyond the common man?

 

[ianr33]

Are you really suggesting that someone who has made 18 dives in 5 years cut custom tables?

Why would anyone do that?

Much better to do Fundies and learn ratio Deco.

 

[Captain Bil]

Are you really suggesting that someone who has made 18 dives in 5 years cut custom tables?

FWIW, the Hollis DG03 has a nice big display and is easy to use in the water. Otherwise I'd suggest looking for used.

The point was tables. Generic NAUI or PADI tables work fine. V Planner yields safe, conservative tables as well. And it's easy to use. Computers are great but you can do some amazing diving without one.

Sent from my XT907 using Tapatalk 2

 

[Diver0001]

Computers are great but you can do some amazing diving without one.

Very true. I think chrpai's point, however, was that infrequent divers may lack sufficient "routine" to make cutting custom tables their wisest alternative.

But by all means, if you've been trained to use tables, then don't be afraid to use them.

R..

 

[Damselfish]

I think computers are great to have for vacation diving and quite frankly are much more practical for this sort of diving than any table. And I've got nothing against gadgets, or saving to afford something you want, but I don't see how dropping close to a grand on a computer makes any sense in your situation. Plus if you're renting your other gear maybe it makes more sense to put that money towards getting your own? That will likely do way more to increase your enjoyment of diving.

There are a couple downsides to your idea of buying one inexpensive computer now and a second very different computer later. For one, its considered bad practice for 2 people to share a computer. Now if you are sticking close and doing every dive together, and diving only on your own, maybe that works for now. But if you do any boat dives, realize the op may insist the person without a computer stick to table profiles, which means their buddy will have to as well, making the computer somewhat useless for that. There's also much to be said for you and your husband having the same or similar computers, and at least the same algorithm. Personally in your situation I'd buy 2 inexpensive Nitrox capable wrist mount computers (and sort out the prescription mask situation.) Then start spending your money on other gear. If you really discover you want the expensive toy in a few years and have excess cash to blow on it, have at it.

Another thing about computers, they fail occasionally. To some people that does not matter, but if you get into the this more, and find yourself on an expensive trip far away about to lose precious dives because your computer crapped out, having a backup computer is priceless. 2 inexpensive computers will be of much more use than one expensive one, especially if the one croaks. There will always be people that say use tables as backup, but practically speaking that simply doesn't work when you have been doing multiple multi-level dives for many days.