Uwatec Smart Com POS!

[Puffer Fish]

I purchased a pair of Smartpro's and a pair of Smartcoms. Of the four, three of them have died on me within 50 dives. The last Smartcom has not been used.

I should sell off the unused one but I'd feel bad about selling off a piece of equipment which I think is going to fail.

Why is it that Uwatec does not come clean with regards to their problem products ? I believe several people on this board have now experienced these problems to the extent that it cannot be the individual user.

I'm on my third smart com... and this one seems to be working great (fingers crossed).

I don't think there is any reason for them to say anything... everyone that has one break takes it back and gets it repaired or replaced.

But I now carry a backup, because I don't trust it to work, which sort of takes the fun out of using it.

Scubapro has been very good at correcting issues, so it would be hard to fault them.

What amazed me on this last one, is just how well it works...my wireless connect distance must be twice what it used to be...

I've had...


1. The battery suddenly go to Zero from 93%.

2. The buttons stop working...cleaning... drying... nothing worked.

3. The wireless stop working. Two sensors...did not work... was the main unit.

Got all new stuff this last time...and while I have yet to get past about 50 dives on one, this one looks promising.

Only odd issue I have is that I will now get high air use alarms, when I am breathing normally... sort of comes and goes for no reason. Two dives ago, it gave me one while I was breathing at .4 cfm/min...for over two minutes, and nothing later when I was actually working and using twice the air... but that is not a show stopper.

 

[I Dive]

I also have the SmartCom and the alerts are so bad they are embarassing. They are almost dangerous, in that when I am in the water with new divers the beeps make them nervous. I've adjusted and/or turned off everything I can think of and it still sounds like an Ipod on most dives. Now, I'm also having trouble getting the stupid IR adapter to work with my Windows Vista. It barely worked with XP Pro and now doesn't even install since I got a new PC with Vista. Of course, MA says it is being phased out so they are no help. If ScubaPro can't help, I will have to look at other computers, but if so I guarantee my next purchase won't be ScubaPro.

 

[John512]

Of course, MA says it is being phased out so they are no help.

Interesting, I was looking at purchasing a smartcom, the LDS does mostly scubapro, but was leaning away from it just because of the size and cost. If they are in fact being phased out along with all of the problems they are having sounds like best to just move along. Was this published anywhere or just what people are saying?

Looks like I may just jump on the aeris t3 I was looking at for a second choice, the aladins look nice but integrated air would seem to be useful as a new diver.

 

[PalatkaBoy]

Using only the ascent/deco (all other alarms turned off using included SmartTrak software) alarms, I never hear anything out of my SmartCOM. It keeps a running log of your last 100 dives, has an excellent dive planner and works perfectly with a generic IR adapter ($20) and Vista. Never had a single problem with mine on 60 dives. This is not posted to say people don't have problems, just to say some do work as advertised.

 

[flareless]

Using only the ascent/deco (all other alarms turned off using included SmartTrak software) alarms, I never hear anything out of my SmartCOM. It keeps a running log of your last 100 dives, has an excellent dive planner and works perfectly with a generic IR adapter ($20) and Vista. Never had a single problem with mine on 60 dives. This is not posted to say people don't have problems, just to say some do work as advertised.

What he said

 

[Puffer Fish]

Using only the ascent/deco (all other alarms turned off using included SmartTrak software) alarms, I never hear anything out of my SmartCOM. It keeps a running log of your last 100 dives, has an excellent dive planner and works perfectly with a generic IR adapter ($20) and Vista. Never had a single problem with mine on 60 dives. This is not posted to say people don't have problems, just to say some do work as advertised.

I would think that the majority of the time that is true..but 60 dives is not a lot of dives.

And most of the odd, strange alarms are due to loss of connectivity. The antenna for the transmitter is directly under the serial number on the case.. if that happens to end up in a position exactly opposite your computer (when mounted on the tank, pointed away from where your arm is, or mounted on one side with your computer on the other), then you will get alarms on and off during the dive, depending where your arm happens to be. Just random luck will have it good on some, terrible on others.

How about posting which IR unit you are using.. as they are getting harder to buy or even find.

 

[PalatkaBoy]

I would think that the majority of the time that is true..but 60 dives is not a lot of dives.

And most of the odd, strange alarms are due to loss of connectivity. The antenna for the transmitter is directly under the serial number on the case.. if that happens to end up in a position exactly opposite your computer (when mounted on the tank, pointed away from where your arm is, or mounted on one side with your computer on the other), then you will get alarms on and off during the dive, depending where your arm happens to be. Just random luck will have it good on some, terrible on others.

How about posting which IR unit you are using.. as they are getting harder to buy or even find.

I think most here are confusing the SmartCom with the SmartTEC and SmartZ. The SmartCom is a console connected by a hose to one of your high pressure ports. There is no transmitter to lose connectivity. I understand that kind of arrangement will have more problems and headaches to deal with. And although statistically speaking 60 dives is not enough to generate complete reliability data, it's 60 dives without a single problem (and 91% battery left). Some of the posts here mention first dives, less than 50 dives, 4th dive, etc. with nothing but problems. One poster goes so far as to say it's dangerous. If someone reading this thread is about to make a computer decision based on the information in this thread, then experiences with the SmartCom need to be posted, no matter how insignificant.

As for the IR adapter, I'll check it out when I get home and post the info.

 

[PalatkaBoy]

How about posting which IR unit you are using.. as they are getting harder to buy or even find.

StarTech.com - USB IrDA Mini Adapter

I got this a couple of years ago when I got my SmartCom. I see it's been replaced though. You should still be able to find it on the net, though. Just use some google-foo and search for "StarTech USB IRDa adapter" and you'll find them (and probably less than $20). The website says the new one works with Vista but I know the old one does. Works perfectly on a Vista Home Premium and Vista Ultimate laptop with SmartTrak software. If you have any questions just shoot me a PM.