to all the owners of mares icon hd, or those who thought about buying it,i got Qs plz

[MeanGuy]

to be honest, im really thinking about buying it, i've been reading the posts all around, some of them are just too old , from 2009 , or january 2011 , but im wondering.. i got couple of questions to the owners.

how often do u charge your battery? suppose im on a small boat and i can't recharge it after each dive.
does it have a stand by mode?

how conservative is the computer? im looking for a less conservative profile, would it actually stop working to prevent me from diving ?

what stuff should i watch out for? for example, i read that people have shortened the usb port ? how can that be possible? others dont have support with windows 7 drivers , have these issues been solved yet?

i heard that sometimes you can lose the signal from the transmitter "like some computers in the market" .. has that ever happened to you?

in 2009, when it first came out i guess, everyone was dissing out the mares icon hd, and when comparing it to the sol , they kept saying "the icon doesn't have a transmitter " but now that it does, would u still choose the sol over icon? i mean the difference in price isn't that big if im buying new ones "300 bucks" .. i can save that for couple of months and buy the icon.

i know people say i have to test it underwater first, sadly, no one i know has one, they all have suunto computers

if you are someone who wanned to buy it, but changed your mind, tell us why you changed your mind?

thanks.

 

[RIdiverMike]

Hey Meanguy,

Thx for asking these questions - I've wondered the same, especially regarding the comparison to the Sol (or I'd actually be interested in the Luna) and I'd like to add a few more questions:

1. Sol brags about having the best electronic compass made. How do Icon owners feel?

2. Some folks seem to say the color screen is great; others say it's difficult to read at angles compared to the Sol - your view? Given the typically poor viz in RI, this is a significant factor to me.

3. How useful do you find the feature of loading dive maps? For that matter, where the heck do you find maps?

Thx all.

 

[MeanGuy]

to be honest, i've posted something like "are there unhappy icon hd owners?" in mares section , i only got 2 replies , they were complaining about the compass thats for sure.

the only pictures i've seen of the icon hd underwater is this one, i've searched youtube and other sites

i took this image from http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/mares-just-add-water/311996-mares-icon-hd-3.html

Working on it ....

Alberto (aka eDiver)

and this one

a video showing it underwater with different angles would be nice, sadly i haven't seen it yet. as for the map feature "from what i've read" they are made by dive centers, i think u can just load them as simple images "im not sure of that" .. but hopefully our questions will be answered soon

there are lots of sites that talk about it, like this one for example, but i want the reviews from the users around here

http://www.divernet.com/Diving_Gear/diver_tests/408985/computer_4_mares_icon_hd.html

thanks for contributing =)

 

[wavemaker]

MeanGuy:


I purchased the Icon HD in April 2010. I've done approximately 100 dives on it. I have had no problems with the computer, and just got the new Air Integrated model yesterday. Was hoping to dive it this weekend, but looks like Hurricane Irene will change my plans.

I'll do my best to answer the questions i can.

Normally the battery lasts at least 6-10 dives without recharging. I have never run into a charging problem with it.
I have not had any problems with shorting the usb port. Mares recommends that you hook up the computer end first, and make sure the connection is on properly, then plug it in. Obviously you would want to charge when the computer is dry.

The computer is extremely easy to use. Everything is menu driven. It is very easy to read underwater. I have found that the compass is a little squirrley, but there is a menu item to calibrate the compass, which I don't think I've ever done.

The profile has 3 options: Standard, Conservative, and intermediate. You can also adjust the ppo2 from 1.6 to 1.2. I dive nitrox, anywhere from shallow dives up to 130 feet and have never gone into deco.

I'm not a huge fan of the Dive organizer software. My home pc is a 64 bit Windows 7 and the software does not like it. My laptop is 32 bit Windows 7 and I have not had a problem.

I just got the AI unit and have not dove it yet. It took about 30 seconds to pair the transmiter. Can't comment yet on whether the signal gets lost.

Let me know if you have any other questions.

 

[MeanGuy]

hey wavemaker,congrats on your A.I. thank you for the reply. i appreciate it a lot , im sorry about the hurricane i hope everyone will be safe. guess i'll wait for your feedback on the A.I.

how often do you dive? do you wait for the battery to be fully discharged before re-charging it again? do you mind showing us the "usb port?" , is it hard to clean it and dry it out before connecting it ?

im glad you never gone into deco, but sometimes you have to i guess depending on the dive, i got into deco twice in a diving safari last month , but only for 2 minutes "max" so it wasn't serious

 

[Scott]

how often do u charge your battery? suppose im on a small boat and i can't recharge it after each dive.
does it have a stand by mode?

Not sure about stand by mode as I have only used a demo model for a two day trip. Over the course of two day I made 11 dives totaling about 6 hours of bottom time and I did not recharge it until I got back home.

how conservative is the computer? im looking for a less conservative profile, would it actually stop working to prevent me from diving ?

On the same trip I wanted to compare it to my Sunnto Vyper. I did find it slightly more conservative than my Sunnto

what stuff should i watch out for? for example, i read that people have shortened the usb port ? how can that be possible? others dont have support with windows 7 drivers , have these issues been solved yet?

I have no answer

i heard that sometimes you can lose the signal from the transmitter "like some computers in the market" .. has that ever happened to you?

Not on the small number of dives I used it. Every AI computer I have owned I have lost signal during a dive. Once you figure out the reason it is easy. My Sunnto for example, at times loses signal when diving very silty water and I have my hands extended out in front of me. Solution, bring them back in a ways and it restores.

if you are someone who wanned to buy it, but changed your mind, tell us why you changed your mind?

My wife likes it so I am sure I will have one at my disposal fairly soon. I would like to try it on a tech dive to see how well it handles gas switching and how it compares to my other Sunntos.

 

[MeanGuy]

thanks for the feedback =) im glad your wife is happy with it . too bad my wife hates diving -.-

 

[wavemaker]

I usually do 75-100 dives a year. Sometimes 10 in a week, and then not for a month or two. Whenever the battery gets down to 50% or less, I plug it in. I don't wait for it to fully discharge.I have approx 100 dives on my first Icon and have never had a problem. I just received the new AI one this week and haven't had a chance to use it so I can't comment on it.

The USB connection is a very simple connection on the bottom of the computer. (don't have a picture). The cable snaps on, you just have to make sure that it is properly lined up. It's very easy to clean (wipe off) and you can see if it's dry.

 

[MeanGuy]

i see , =) thanks that cleared a lot of questions =) hopefully you'll try out the transmitter soon and give us the feedback.

 

[Hatul]

I usually do 75-100 dives a year. Sometimes 10 in a week, and then not for a month or two. Whenever the battery gets down to 50% or less, I plug it in. I don't wait for it to fully discharge.I have approx 100 dives on my first Icon and have never had a problem. I just received the new AI one this week and haven't had a chance to use it so I can't comment on it.

The USB connection is a very simple connection on the bottom of the computer. (don't have a picture). The cable snaps on, you just have to make sure that it is properly lined up. It's very easy to clean (wipe off) and you can see if it's dry.

Can you comment on the display in night diving. Is the wrist unit in the AI computer identical to the older one, aside from the receiver?

Adam