To Hose or Not to Hose?

[The Goose]

I was at a crossroads when looking for a new air integrated computer because I owned the infamous P.O.S. Data Trans Plus which gave me nothing but headaches! I would loose connection at depth and would never be able to reconnect until I surfaced... this happened to me numerous times. I replaced the transmitter 3 times until I just gave up. At this point I was ready to go back to the hose which was the reason why I went to the Data Trans in the first place (streamline & reduce hoses). Anyway, I decided to go hoseless one more time and I believe Oceanic has finally figured it out with the new VT Pro! I definately recommend this computer! This computer rocks! compact, great new features, and most importantly RELIABLE!

 

[paulwlee]

Although I am a staunch Suunto fan, I like the looks and the compactness(as small as the Suuntos) of the new series of computers Oceanic has.

But how many dives have you done with the VT Pro?
How can you tell that it is more reliable than the Datatrans Plus?

I'm interested because I like to keep track of all good gear out there.

Oh, and BTW, the Suunto Vytec rocks too!

 

[The Goose]

I have logged close to 100 on it... with a good mix i.e. staged deco, alot of 4 repetitive dive days (I'm an active Dive Con)
Actually, I was actually looking at the Suunto (cool mixed gas feature) but it was about $300 more...

 

[The Goose]

The Data Trans had way too many bugs, even after all the software revisions, it had alot of transmission problems. Out of 5 people I know who have owned them 3 of them had problems and were allways going back to Oceanic.

 

[CD_in_Chitown]

Sounds cool Goose, I have a buddy that loves his. He had a bad transmitter straight out of the box which was quickly replaced after the whole unit was inspected, but having dove it nearly 100 dives he loves it. I opted for the Versa Pro due to the Data Trans issues you experienced and am kicking myself some now.

 

[The Goose]

A helpful modification if diving hoseless... After dealing with the lost transmission issues on the Data Trans... I mounted a pony bottle pressure gauge to my first stage...just in case... your buddy can always look back and check the pressure for you! They are small and inexpensive and will "save" a dive!

 

[paulwlee]

Yes, I dived with a few people who had the Datatrans, and witnessed a fair number of problems, so I was curious whether the VT Pro was better.

Another thing you can do, is get a regular pressure gauge and mount it on a short (24~26") hose, put a bolt-snap on it and just clip it to a lower d-ring on the left. I clip it to the BCD(now I'm using a harness, but the same) when setting up the gear and then I don't even notice it's there until I need it.

I thought it was important for me not to have to abort the dive when assisting in classes, even if the computer died for some reason. (I also have a Vyper as backup in such situations.)