The great Suunto data cable thread (incl DIY)

[Jackknife]

Cool deal, I will be ordering my put together unit from you shortly. I still have at least a week and half wait for my Vytec to get in. But with everything that's been said, I totally agree with you that you would get great satisfaction in doing it yourself.

By the way, when I mentioned that I was in the industry, I was talking about the information systems industry, and comparing "com ports to serial cables". No big deal, I'm just glad there are good guys out there like yourself helping us out so we don't get ripped off by offering these quality kits, I've been looking and your kit would save anyone $100 bucks easy. Now that's somethin' ta say! Good Job!!!!

 

[jamiei]

Thanks and be sure to check out this page product comparison . Its says a lot...

 

[SMKChef]

jamiei once bubbled...
I post everyone that has a response about my products under customer comments on my site.

OMG, I am famous!! I've been published on a website, TWICE!!


Will I get a star on the Hollywood walk of fame? Or just a starfish in my wetsuit??
:doctor:

 

[jamiei]

hopefully just a lot of cool looking, graph filled log book pages... but I'd watch out for the starfish... :royal:

 

[jamiei]

I will try to contact each of you individually, but thought this would also be a good way to let everyone know about this upcoming design change. I will be offering gold-plated, spring-loaded contacts for both interfaces and kits starting next week if everything goes as planned. Costs for each will increase slightly as is indicated on my site. They are available for preorder on my site now and will be shipped on a first come-first serve basis.
Shipping times may be delayed more than usual initially. As always, I do my best to keep costs down as much as possible to balance between my need to make some profit while keeping the price very competitive for divers.

The main reason for this thread is to let everyone that already has one know that I will upgrade any interfaces that you may have already purchased from me for around $15. This will include shipment from me to you, new contacts installed, and in most instances a new case for your interface. You may also order the contacts from me for $5 per set and this also includes shipping. These are preliminary prices and may fluctuate slightly in the future. If you are interested, please let me know ASAP and make payment arrangements so that I can be sure I have enough contacts on hand for a quick turnaround. I will most likely be having a waiting list at first with upgrade times of at least a week. If it is urgent that you get your interface back within a certain time frame, please make me aware of this prior to your shipment to me. I feel this is a significant improvement and I ask for your patience during the changeover process as the end result will well be worth it.

For anyone that has any questions or concerns, please post them here, PM me, or email me. Thanks

 

[Jackknife]

Or does it just plug in and it's hands free syncing?

 

[Jackknife]

Just thought I'd mention that. What a rip off over a $100 bucks easy. GEEZ!

 

[O-ring]

Jackknife once bubbled...
Or does it just plug in and it's hands free syncing?

It works fine how it is, but hands free synching would be cool...

 

[jamiei]

You can make yours hands free with the spring contacts, but I can't set them up for it and still keep the price down. Its simply a matter of screwing two screws in one end of the case (opposite the contacts) and putting a rubber band in the other end of the case. The two screws on one end are what you hook the rubber band around and will hold the interface in place. You can do this with the spring loaded contacts because they provide their own tension on the contacts in addition to that of the rubber band. The main reason for the spring loaded contacts was to make it easier to successfully transfer the files. A few people have trouble getting the hand of making good contact with the fixed pins. The spring loaded contacts solve this problem in two ways: the first is that the springs compensate for any differences in pin lenth or interface positioning, the second is the the contact design I will be using has concave tips that keep them from sliding off the dive computer contacts. I obvioulsy couldn't take the time to hand make a clip for every interface, but the rubber band method should work fine. Having to take the 10-15 minutes additional to set up each interface this way would drive my cost up. I am also trying to find a company to custom make the circuit boards for me and to see if its economically feasible. If so, this would be a great improvement also.

The suunto version does have a "plug" built into the interface from what I've seen that clips onto the dive computer. I'm not sure how it clips to some wrist mounts like the mosquito. I can see how it will clip into the outer case of my cobra. The contacts on my interface will leave more room for error because the points will have 1/4" of travel which appears to be much more than the suunto if it has spring contacts at all. There is a design on the net I've seen somwhere that attempts to duplicate the suunto plug. The design is of plexiglass and involves quite a bit of carving of the plexiglass. This design would take probably an hour or so to complete which just isn't worth the additional cost because it makes no real significant improvement. My advice is that if someone really hates the idea of holding the interface onto their dive computer for a few seconds, and you don't mind paying $100 extra, then get the interface from suunto. Otherwise, just smile and think about the money you saved while you hold the interface you got from me onto your DC.

 

[O-ring]

I had trouble the first two tries, but then got the hang of it and now it isn't too bad. I just hold the interface and computer in one hand and click the transfer button with the other. Works fine the way it is, so I don't think I will change it unless it breaks.