My Vyper Air is now on order, looking forward to my first dive computer.
"hello Computer"
"hello Computer"
Suunto Vyper Air or Vytec DS
- Thread starter Gamehunter
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Here's a little insight for you:
The Vyper Air fixed the shortcomings of the Vyper2, namely the electonic compass. The compass is still 2D, but the computer has a tilt sensor. They developed an algorithm to compensate for the tilt. Very clever and works extremely well. They also added an On-time adjustment to address the complaint that the compass didn't stay on long enough.
Suunto added the wireless air feature because it was going to be included in the new Helo2. The HelO2 is the new recreational tri-mix computer that was introduced last week at Beneath the Sea. The Helo2 does not include the compass feature, as it takes up to much memory. Tri-mix divers aren't using the compass anyway, so it was a smart move to get rid of it.
If you're thinking of tri-mix and aren't using a rebreather, this is the product to get. It's the best priced tri-mix computer on the market. It comes with the planning software that is pretty slick. You can plan the dives on a PC, upload to the computer, then download the dive and compare against the plan. It prints out run tables and even gas mixing recipes. The software and PC interface is included with the product. Most impotantly, the Helo2 built on a tried and true platform. Some of these other tri-mix computers, like the VR3, VRX, NitekX, etc, are one-off products whose quality is suspect at best. Buttons falling out, screens going blank, blah, blah. I guess the rebreather guys don't have any choice, though.
The Vyper Air fixed the shortcomings of the Vyper2, namely the electonic compass. The compass is still 2D, but the computer has a tilt sensor. They developed an algorithm to compensate for the tilt. Very clever and works extremely well. They also added an On-time adjustment to address the complaint that the compass didn't stay on long enough.
Suunto added the wireless air feature because it was going to be included in the new Helo2. The HelO2 is the new recreational tri-mix computer that was introduced last week at Beneath the Sea. The Helo2 does not include the compass feature, as it takes up to much memory. Tri-mix divers aren't using the compass anyway, so it was a smart move to get rid of it.
If you're thinking of tri-mix and aren't using a rebreather, this is the product to get. It's the best priced tri-mix computer on the market. It comes with the planning software that is pretty slick. You can plan the dives on a PC, upload to the computer, then download the dive and compare against the plan. It prints out run tables and even gas mixing recipes. The software and PC interface is included with the product. Most impotantly, the Helo2 built on a tried and true platform. Some of these other tri-mix computers, like the VR3, VRX, NitekX, etc, are one-off products whose quality is suspect at best. Buttons falling out, screens going blank, blah, blah. I guess the rebreather guys don't have any choice, though.
handben
Contributor
Does anyone know where the viper air is available and for how much? I'd love to pick up one before heading to Bonaire in June.
Just another Cinderella
Contributor
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Dove yesterday with a new Viper air [sans transmitter]. It replaced my Vytec which is in the repair shop for who knows how long.
Very easy to work, and for me most importantly has easy numbers to read.
Instructions were not great [downloaded as mine were in Dutch] and I miss the little cheat card that came with the Vytec. Just played a little with the compass.
Seems to be a solid Suunto computer.
Will post pros and cons once I have many more dives but it looks so far like the only complaint will be the on line manual.
Very easy to work, and for me most importantly has easy numbers to read.
Instructions were not great [downloaded as mine were in Dutch] and I miss the little cheat card that came with the Vytec. Just played a little with the compass.
Seems to be a solid Suunto computer.
Will post pros and cons once I have many more dives but it looks so far like the only complaint will be the on line manual.
Did another two dives on my Vyper Air yesterday. The numbers are REAL easy to read.. I had other divers jealous of the ease of reading. The pairing is even simpler than the vytec. It does take a little getting used to. I do like the ability to set the time out feature for the compass. No issue with tilt now that it read even to 45 degrees tilt or so. I do miss the cheat sheet noted above as well though. I have not downloaded the 4 dives to the PC yet, but have heard it will wipe out my old vytec downloaded dives.. I need to back that up first...
I also like that the screeen cover fits over the whole face now too.. the buttons are still in the open, but the overall rim should be more protected now.
I also like that the screeen cover fits over the whole face now too.. the buttons are still in the open, but the overall rim should be more protected now.
hayaku
New
I've logged about 13 dives on my Vyper air (6 in SoCal, 7 in Australia) over the last month or so, and while I basically know nothing since I was just certified in February, I'm pretty happy with the computer. The buttons are easy enough to press, and the gauge is easy to read. One issue I have is that the audible alarms that go off when you ascend too fast, or exceed a limit are pretty hard to hear in the water. When I first used it in SoCal, I was wearing a hood, so I figured that was my problem, but in Australia without a hood it was still pretty hard to hear. There's no setting for the volume of the alarm, but to compare, my dive instructur had a Uwatec that beeped loud enough for me to hear it a few feet away. Other than that, the logging mode of the Air is nice so you can review your dive profile on the watch, with depth, temp, and air (if you have the wireless transmitter) which is probably more of novelty for us recreational divers. Like someone mentioned, the bookmarking is a bit annoying when you're trying to turn on the compass, and the compass itself is a bit slow to react to new directions. Although like I mentioned, I'm a new diver, and have nothign to compare it against, just wanted to share my experiences. I would imagine for someone at my level, that even a Gecko would be sufficient, but I plan on diving more, and eventually doing Nitrox, so I wanted more feature filled computer that could grow with me.
Oh and on a side note, the strap for the Air doesn't have a wavy part to stretch when you tighten it down like some other wrist mounted ones which would be nice to keep the computer secure on your wrist. At 100 feet with my 7mm wetsuit, even as tight as I thought I should make the strap on the surface, the computer was pretty loose. Again, minor gripe, but woudl be nice for them to think about this for the future.
I'm not sure what most of you look for in a computer other than the conservativeness of the computer, but you can dial back the algorithm, but I haven't tried and I don't know how much more bottom time it gives you. Hope that helps a bit. I'm still very happy with the computer especially for the features, price, and build quality of Suunto's products.
Oh and on a side note, the strap for the Air doesn't have a wavy part to stretch when you tighten it down like some other wrist mounted ones which would be nice to keep the computer secure on your wrist. At 100 feet with my 7mm wetsuit, even as tight as I thought I should make the strap on the surface, the computer was pretty loose. Again, minor gripe, but woudl be nice for them to think about this for the future.
I'm not sure what most of you look for in a computer other than the conservativeness of the computer, but you can dial back the algorithm, but I haven't tried and I don't know how much more bottom time it gives you. Hope that helps a bit. I'm still very happy with the computer especially for the features, price, and build quality of Suunto's products.
Had my first two dives with the Vyper Air today at Race Rocks. Worked really well, easy to read and easy to use. My buddy said he found it easier to use my display than his, and I didn't know he was looking over my shoulder till after the dive.
TheScubaBOB
Contributor
Gave my Vyper 2 to the Wifie when I got my Vyper Air...
As I've already learned the V2 the Air was no real learning curve.
Only done 1 pool dive in Gauge Mode so far but April 25th I'll be getting it wet a Pearl Lake (in Illinois).
I hated the compass on my V2. +/-5 degrees? How useless was that, the +/-45 degrees works so much better.
FWIW, I have a ScubaPro Quick Disconnect on the HP port of all 3 of my Regulator Sets (Mine, Wifie's & the Pony Reg) this allows me to move Gauge Sets & Transmitter as I see fit!
The LDS had a UTec or something like that on display and told me the Vyper Tx would be the same size but to my {pleasent} suprise it was noticably smaller.
As I've already learned the V2 the Air was no real learning curve.
Only done 1 pool dive in Gauge Mode so far but April 25th I'll be getting it wet a Pearl Lake (in Illinois).
I hated the compass on my V2. +/-5 degrees? How useless was that, the +/-45 degrees works so much better.
FWIW, I have a ScubaPro Quick Disconnect on the HP port of all 3 of my Regulator Sets (Mine, Wifie's & the Pony Reg) this allows me to move Gauge Sets & Transmitter as I see fit!
The LDS had a UTec or something like that on display and told me the Vyper Tx would be the same size but to my {pleasent} suprise it was noticably smaller.
I'm currently torn between the vyper air and the d6, can anyone make some recommendations here? Air integration would be nice down the road and the compass on the vyper is attractive too, but the d6 just looks so sleek 
Does the vyper do the log graph mode like the d6? The website says it does but I haven't been able to get hands on with one or find a really detailed review online....
Does the vyper do the log graph mode like the d6? The website says it does but I haven't been able to get hands on with one or find a really detailed review online....
altaskier
Contributor
I prefer a larger display like on the Vyper Air, especially for dark and murky days, and my old eyes...
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