Shearwater quality control

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I know we all like to support LDS but sometimes it is just a lot easier to buy on Amazon. If there is a problem it is a quick fix to just return it and get a new one.

I assure you my dive shop will treat you as good or better as Amazon. I doubt Shearwater sent out a bad product. My guess is, it got finger-phucked in the store as a display and then was sold as retail, BUT who buys a Shearwater and walks out the store without turning it on, playing with it, etc. When we sell a Shearwater, we program it to your transponder, set the date, time, OC/Tec Mode, GF, etc. Are you guys not doing this?
 
When I decided to buy the Perdix, I was deciding between that and the Mares Genius. In the end I went with Shearwater because I had seen so many good testament to their customer service and willing to go that extra step. Sure, They have a great product, but the reason why their customer service is now legendary is because like any other electronic company that pushes the envelope, there are issues sometimes with these finely tuned computers. No company makes a perfect product but how you handle the issues that do pop-up makes a huge difference.
That's it. That's how I was won over. I have not experienced it first hand and hopefully I will never, but it is nice to know it is there if that happens.
It's not at all a cult like mentality.
 
The one thing I learned from this thread is that there are some people who think there are other people who think Shearwater is infallible.
Maybe you missed the thread a couple of weeks ago where I detailed my broken shearwaters?

Hey, I love shearwater but they have their issues. Over the years different models have had major weak spots. The Predator's had buttons that wore out and needed replacement. The Petrel screens didn't have bezels and cracked. The early model Teric had a total failure of batteries for a very significant percentages of units. Fortunately, the company has great service and support in North America. I've used it often.
The point is that they make best in class products and have the best support infrastructure and policies in the industry. If you have a problem and give them a chance, they will do the right thing.

I understand the OP being disturbed about a defect right out of the box. Nobody wants to buy a problem and service something right out of the box. I would have returned this computer as well, and either swapped it out or bought another. We all buy online these days, and this is the downside. You can't try before you buy or inspect, and returns have a bit of friction.
 
Maybe you missed the thread a couple of weeks ago where I detailed my broken shearwaters?

Hey, I love shearwater but they have their issues. Over the years different models have had major weak spots. The Predator's had buttons that wore out and needed replacement. The Petrel screens didn't have bezels and cracked. The early model Teric had a total failure of batteries for a very significant percentages of units. Fortunately, the company has great service and support in North America. I've used it often.
The point is that they make best in class products and have the best support infrastructure and policies in the industry. If you have a problem and give them a chance, they will do the right thing.

I understand the OP being disturbed about a defect right out of the box. Nobody wants to buy a problem and service something right out of the box. I would have returned this computer as well, and either swapped it out or bought another. We all buy online these days, and this is the downside. You can't try before you buy or inspect, and returns have a bit of friction.
No, I did not see that thread, which is not surprising because I don't follow Shearwater threads very much. My Petrels are 10 years old, going strong, and I'm not in the market for new computers quite yet. While I have heard of some of the quality issues you apparently mentioned in that thread, it's my understanding that Shearwater addressed them. I believe Shearwater makes good products overall, yet I am under no illusion that they can make an ever-expanding line of products without encountering some quality issues. If there are some people on SB who believe or have believed in the past that Shearwater is infallable--that Shearwater is not susceptible to the occasional design flaw or slip in quality control--those people are just not being reasonable. But I haven't seen anyone post that they believe in the infallability of Shearwater. What I have seen are people post about a problem, and then follow it up with a post praising Shearwater for how they handled the problem.
 
I decided to give another try and bought a second unit. Unfortunately the second unit I received had some quality issues as well.

Some material between the glass and titanium faceplate was extruding as shown in the picture.

Emailed Dive-Tronix and they confirmed it is a foam that protects the glass from the faceplate.

Returned the unit. Received a third unit and this one looks perfect.

And this is end of my new computer with AI purchase journey.

Shearwater makes great computers but their QC is left a lot to be desired.

Customer service is decent. It took them 24 hours to answer my emails. Dive-Tronix (Richard and Michele) are amazing. They answered all my emails within hours.

Thank you for all the comments.

To all bullies out there, I really hope you spend more time having fun underwater and far, far away from your keyboard
 

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