Haptics you can feel through a 7mm wetsuit? I'm impressed by that, although I'd not want them turned up that high on my bare wrist!
This seems like a winner for vacation diving. For those divers that manage a couple dives a year on the family trip to the Caribbean, you have a device you know extremely well from daily life and that you know you keep charged, rather than a standalone computer you kinda forgot to get serviced or, worse, have to rent. Big, clear ascent rate warnings in color. It looks more accessible than some inscrutable Suunto, especially with a companion phone app.
If I had an apple watch I'd wear this it on my other wrist to my Perdix just to get GPS integration and all the health monitoring too - interesting to correlate heart rate with events in the dive, gas consumption and so on.
I have Garmin's competing product the Descent Mk2 and can feel the haptic alerts through a drysuit. Those alerts are probably helpful for less experienced divers but I disabled them (silent diving mode) to reduce distractions.
Optical wrist heart rate sensors can't read through an exposure suit. Garmin has chest heart rate monitor straps which can record heart rate during a dive (within depth limits) and then upload those to the dive computer upon surfacing. I don't think Apple supports those.
I think this looks amazing for warm-water vacation divers - typically they are stuck with rental equipment, which usually means a cheap, dated computer on a bulky console. Having a well-designed UI will definitely improve these divers safety - the last boat dive I went on, an experienced diver blew past no-deco limits because he didn't understand his unfamiliar rental computer.
That being said, I can't personally imagine taking the Apple Watch Ultra to, say, 80-90 feet if it's only rated to 130. It's just too expensive.
Slight clarification: the Apple Watch Ultra has a water resistance rating of 100m. The Oceanic+ app has a 130ft/40m limit because that's the recreational diving limit.
I took it to 140ft a month ago. It complained and turned the screen yellow as a warning, but readings in the built in Depth app (which measures depth, water temp, and dive time but is NOT a dive computer) matched my dive computer exactly at that depth and all other depths.
It’s rated as water resistant to 100m, 300+ feet - it’s just the software and measurement sensor bits that get queasy at 130ft.
> That being said, I can't personally imagine taking the Apple Watch Ultra to, say, 80-90 feet if it's only rated to 130. It's just too expensive.
I get the feeling of it being too expensive - but technically? If anything is to be expected from Apple, it is to under-promise on advertised specifications, and at least here in Europe, under consumer protection laws I can hold Apple accountable for not delivering upon their spec [1]. The hardest thing with anything underwater is pressure differential anyway - old analog watches have a lot of air inside which is compressible, which means you need strong seals and construction to avoid the pressure differential to simply crack the case. A modern digital watch however? Space is scarce so every cubic millimetre is packed with solid incompressible materials, making it way easier to withstand higher pressure.
[1] Actually had to do that with a CAT phone many years back when I worked in construction, a simple fall on a floor slab broke the screen. I made a backup (back then, that was actually feasible because rooting was easy, another personal gripe I have with recent Android), went up to the retailer and had it shipped in - a week later I had a brand new device and a written apology that the product was not up to spec.
> For access to decompression tracking, tissue loading, the location planner, and an unlimited logbook capacity, Oceanic+ is $9.99 (US) per month, or annually for $79.99 (US). Family Sharing is also available for $129 (US) annually, allowing access for up to five people.
I want to take a sabbatical and clone this stuff as an open source project. It’s so obnoxious that Apple advertised the watch as a dive computer, but you need to pay a third party $10/mo to use those features. I was considering sport watches in the $1200 range which make the $800 Apple Watch look like a steal, but after 5 years the total ownership cost of Apple Watch will be higher. It still seems like a fine deal on paper since outside of scuba, the Apple Watch is vastly preferable to a Garmin or Suunto to me, but it’s annoying!
Any HN scuba divers here that would use this as their only dive computer on a dive? I'm not a scuba diver myself but do engage in other adventure sports where reliable equipment can make the difference between a great trip and disaster. I'd be very reluctant to trust my life or health to this.
I'm a recreational diver. I wouldn't use this as my _only_ computer, but I would say the same for the computers I currently use. I always dive with 2 computers just in case one fails, a battery dies, etc. As 'latchkey said, never rely on a single piece of equipment. With that being said, I would be willing to swap out my wrist computer for the Apple Watch Ultra. The superior display and UX would actually be a big quality of life improvement over my current wrist computer. And, I'd still have my backup computer in my SPG to compare against or fall back to.
I just spent a month in Thailand diving around the sites near to BKK e.g. Koh Chang with the Apple Watch and used it as my only underwater computer. I had a proper dive computer on the boat to help with planning.
a) You never trust your life to any single device and there are always backup plans if something fails. And at recreational depths you're not going to do severe damage if your watch fails and you lose no decompression limit information.
b) The watch is such a joy to use underwater. It's 100x brighter and clearer than other devices so you see information at a glance. It actually made the whole diving experience better it was that good.
c) I've had Apple Watches since the original one and reliability has always been excellent. Easily on par with other dive computers. And of course the ease and quality of the user experience is significantly better.
Not my only, but if I was starting out again I'd consider an apple watch ultra over a dedicated computer. Consequences of computer failure on a well-planned open water rec dive are fairly minimal. This doodad, plus a backup basic watch capable of working at that depth (so you have an idea of time although really your decision to surface is largely driven by air remaining) and I'd be confident. Ascent rate is the only unknown then, but you have a buddy or a group to follow. If you're really unlucky, losing your computer and your group, you just remember your training and swim up really really slowly. Missing your safety stop isn't going to kill you. Losing your dive boat might though :)
I've done a lot of dives, in the late 80's, early 90's. We didn't have any of this fancy stuff. For sure, you never rely on a single piece of equipment.
Except for more advanced (deeper) dives, a dive computer is fairly unnecessary. 700 lbs of air pressure left, go back up, slowly.
I did most of my diving right off the coast of san diego, where there are amazing kelp forests. I preferred less deep dives (35-50 feet) anyway... you start going deep, you have much less air/time down below.
I would assume this to be a very tiny market for users.
I plan to do so, and already purchased an Apple Watch Ultra for this purpose. I also started writing my own dive computer app for the watch to learn SwiftUI. My plan is to dive a few more times with both a traditional rented dive computer and the Ultra to build confidence, and then switch 100% over to the Ultra.
As a recreational diver I meet many people diving within recreational limits that don't use diving computers at all (they usually rely on their DM or guide dive computer which is good enough for < 30m dives people do recreationally).
For that reason the Apple Watch Ultra seems just fine - it doesn't seem to have any less features than my dedicated Suunto D5 (outside missing integration with air tank) and it seems to be a good competitor to Garmin's Descent MK2 series of diving computers (which are pretty amazing but cost 1200$+ with tank pods).
I've done a lot of dives, not in many years since having kids, you should not need a computer in order to dive. This is non-essential gear. I'm sure people who regularly dive (like have a 100+ dives) may disagree.
it says it's rated to 40 meters, which is good for most recreational diving. This would not apply for deeper dives.
I'm curious to see what they have for using it with diver communication and collaboration. If one diver sees something of interest, they can easily notify other divers. I'm not sure if or how well Bluetooth works underwater?
The haptic vibration would be useful to notify about reaching maximum bottom time, and for decompression rest stops while ascending.
But I think I would still keep my traditional dive computer next to pressure gauge in my diving setup.
I wonder if they will have a wireless pressure sensor on the tank so you can also track air pressure and consumption? That would be neat.
a dive computer is more of a "nice to have" then a necessity. You can calculate everything you need to know after the fact, if you have a good idea of your average depth and downtime.
If you're a casual diver (i.e. two dives a day on vacation, maybe a night dive here and there) you don't need a computer at all
Absolutely not! Apple's hardware keeps getting better, but their software reliability has been quite bad over the last 10-ish years. A dive computer is a safety-critical machine - an apple watch is not suitable as a primary unit. Maybe if you're doing only very casual dives and you don't mind the risk of having to do an emergency surface, it is fine.
It’s not misleading, this is Apple releasing the news and it has obviously been developed in collaboration with Apple.
The term “Dive computer” is not something to be taken lightly. It’s hardware you literally depend on to keep you alive during a dive. The fact that Apple is supporting this externally developed app says they have a very higher level of trust in their hardware.
Typically a dive computer would cost more than an Apple Watch and be a single purpose device. The fact that Apple is entering the arena is quite a disruption as other brands will be forced to either compete on price or really raise the bar on innovation to justify their current levels.
I have 0 domain knowledge as well, but it's pretty clear that no "comparison" can be made considering that Subsurface is a visualizer of logs from a dive computer, and Oceanic+ turns an Apple Watch into a dive computer.
I guess it's possible that Subsurface might add support for visualizing logs from Oceanic+.
I have more than 500 dives under my weight belt, and I have a (regular) Apple watch, but I'm skeptical.
First, there's no mention of Nitrox anywhere (except in a screenshot). Most of the serious folks use this mix (basically, air enriched with some more oxygen) for their dives, it's unclear if — or to what extent — this supports Nitrox.
Second, there's no mention of the decompression algorithm they use. Buhlmann, Suunto RGBM, VPM are examples of algorithms where the assumptions about human physiology are backed by hundreds of thousands of dives, but what is driving this specific piece is kind of a mystery. As this device comes under "life support equipment" category, I would love to see more information about that.
Third, battery life is a concern here, while it almost never is with dedicated dive computers. My main device requires a trip to Switzerland every 10-15 years, and my backup device is serviced locally every 3 years or so; having a "two full days battery life" somewhat pales in comparison.
Finally, $10 a month is pretty expensive, especially when it comes on top of $700 down payment. Unclear what happens when you stop paying. I don't doubt that there are people who don't worry about that kind of money: the watch blogs are full with people discussing diving with their Rolexes and Omegas, but I have never seen anyone doing that in real world. 90% of the people use dive computers (owned or rented), and 90% of the rest use basic G-Shocks; you are lucky to see anyone with a mechanical timepiece (which almost always happens to be made by Seiko).
I'm pretty sure this will be used by people who go on a week of dives every half a year or so (those are most people I meet in touristy dive places these days) and not by tech or nitrox divers.
For those people it makes more sense - no need to carry another dive computer, no need to buy another device and the battery will be just fine for two/three dives in a day.
More serious people will still get their Shearwaters/Garmins and other devices. Although, Apple might cause those companies to go out of business eventually and you'll have to buy their subscription for your sport in a few years anyway :)
So is there nothing showing tank air? Most of the newer dive computers have tank companions (dongles if you will) that connect wirelessly to display tank air levels. That feature is non-negotiable to me in a dive computer now.
This is great for the scuba community as it will cause other brands to innovate and most importantly bring diving to a wider audience which will help the sport as a whole which will hopefully raise awareness about endangered underwater ecosystems in the long-run.
Huish, the makers of this app, own the majority of big names in the industry. The reason it’s called Oceanic+ is because they own Oceanic. Along with Apollo, Bare, Ollis, Zeagle and a few others. Interestingly, they don’t believe enough in this app to brand it Suunto, their more current dive watch brand.
My fear is the next Suunto watch will have subscriptions, if this app proves successful.
I really hope it doesn't cause other brands to adopt the "Dive Computer As A Service" model. I like buying products that I actually own. I feel like pressure to push the cost of reliable dive computers down will do more to democratize diving than an app for an expensive smart watch.
I haven't dived (dove?) in 10 years. Last gen dive computers are excellent, but super expensive. Before that, I just use a casio watch and gauges. That being said, unless regulations or recommendations have changed, you still need an analog backup gauges that usually have 3 (compass, depth and tank pressure) + extra regulator. So even if the watch decided to die, you are still safe.
I just looked at the screen shots in the article, nothing that different than my old dive computer. If I go back to being a regular recreational diver, I probably would get that watch and app.
This might be a pivotal moment on subscription based hardware. Apple is selling their hardware as a software platform _to_ companies that already sell their hardware. Will this force other companies selling dive computers to adapt and also use publish an app for Apple's platform?
As a diver it's clear to me that the target audience are future divers. We might delude ourselves on the pros and cons of our current dive computer, models and so on. But I am sure someone entering the sport will consider this along the other options.
My personal opinion, a big majority of recreational (shallow) diving does not even require a dive computer and it all comes into LARPing territory. It's good to know your depth and the time you spent underwater, that's all. I have seen people wearing a +1k USD dive computer diving at most <20m. Of course it's none of my business how they decide to part with their money.
This much money will give you a very nice dive computer, albeit terribly complex and completely overkill for most of the rec. diving. If someone is willing to spend that much on a dive computer for rec diving, I guess an apple watch is money better spent? Let's just acknowledge that a Shearwater Perdix is a tough sell to someone that wants to spend this much but dives very very occasionally and shallow.
I am just sad about the subscription model and the implications this might have if/when it proves successful.
I don't think this will be a useful dive computer for most people. When I first heard the Apple Watch would work as a dive computer I was very excited, but having spent some time thinking about it, and having done 20 dives since the watch was announced, I have changed my mind.
The first problem is battery life. I didn't have to replace the battery on my computer for the 20 dives over a week I did recently. If I had gotten a low battery warning, I could have replaced the coin cell battery in five minutes. With the Apple Watch, I would be uncomfortable starting a dive with less than 80% battery, which means remembering to charge it before every dive. If I forget to charge it, then I cannot quickly replace the battery, and I cannot switch to a backup computer if I hadn't taken it with me on my previous dives as it wouldn't know my tissue loading. Forgetting to charge the watch before any dive would mean missing the dive.
The 40m limit is not a good idea. I imagine Apple's legal department are forcing this one, but it's a really bad idea. I went slightly below 40m a few times last week, I know that breaks "the rules", but I know the risks and they honestly aren't that bad if you don't push things too far. Having my computer lock out, refuse to give me NDL times, depth info or deco stop info if needed is not a good idea, especially when you really need it at those depths.
There is also no mention of nitrox, so I assume it's not supported. That would make this the only dive computer released in the last decade that doesn't support nitrox diving. Nobody who is interested in owning a dive computer will want a computer that doesn't support nitrox.
The one good thing I see about this is the haptics. It's really easy to get alert fatigue underwater from other dive computers beeping around you. Haptics would be far better.
> With the Apple Watch, I would be uncomfortable starting a dive with less than 80% battery...
You'd get over that quickly if you owned this watch. It stays above 80% all the time, with just a few minutes on a mag charge in AM, while you're showering for example, and a few minutes in the evening (during a TV show or video game, for example), even when using it all day for work notifications and all night as a sleep monitor.
It goes 2 or 3 days without charge, and that's before their software update to get a multiple of that. Assuming a 30W+ charger brick, it's surprising how quickly it tops back to 80% ready to go another day or two. Workout mode doesn't burn much more, neither does dive.
Your other takes could improve with actual use as well. Nitrox and gas config, for example, is on the 2nd to last and last screenshots of the watch app itself.
I can with confidence say that I would not trust a dive computer that is rated to a maximum of 40 meters. It would be a bit like owning a car where the breaks were rated for a maximum of 110 km/h. Sure, most of the time you might stay under that limit, but for safety equipment you do want some margins.
If a person accidental loose buoyancy for a moment and end up at 41 meters, they could really end up in a terrible situation. The added stress, not being able to monitor ascent rate, and no information regarding NDL (the no decompression limit).
Humans can't survive on their own under water. Visiting there require equipment designed for that purpose. They don't need to be expensive but they do need to do the job. A 90% functional diving equipment can easily result in 100% dead diver.
Sometimes my brain works so weird. When I first saw "Oceanic+," I thought it must be another offering like "TV+" or "Fitness+." I then wondered what it might be and my first thought, I'm not joking, was that this was going to be an ocean nature documentary subscription service to compete with National Geographic on Disney+.
> Oceanic+ enables recreational scuba divers to take the watch they wear every day to previously unreachable depths — up to 40 meters, or 130 feet, to be exact
This is perfect, as the limit for nitrox diving (ie the most frequently used mixture of gas for recreational dives) is a little over 130 ft.
This is still crazy to me that most (all?) smartwatch cannot get past ~50m WR when I can buy a basic casio for a fraction of the cost with 100m to 200m WR.
But then I guess using a tactile screen underwater is pretty hard. I really don't see the Apple Watch being use has anything but a gadget for diving.
edit: so the apple watch ultra has a WR of 100m. I stand corrected.
[+] [-] scrumper|3 years ago|reply
This seems like a winner for vacation diving. For those divers that manage a couple dives a year on the family trip to the Caribbean, you have a device you know extremely well from daily life and that you know you keep charged, rather than a standalone computer you kinda forgot to get serviced or, worse, have to rent. Big, clear ascent rate warnings in color. It looks more accessible than some inscrutable Suunto, especially with a companion phone app.
If I had an apple watch I'd wear this it on my other wrist to my Perdix just to get GPS integration and all the health monitoring too - interesting to correlate heart rate with events in the dive, gas consumption and so on.
[+] [-] nradov|3 years ago|reply
Optical wrist heart rate sensors can't read through an exposure suit. Garmin has chest heart rate monitor straps which can record heart rate during a dive (within depth limits) and then upload those to the dive computer upon surfacing. I don't think Apple supports those.
[+] [-] BugsJustFindMe|3 years ago|reply
[+] [-] raydiatian|3 years ago|reply
[+] [-] nixpulvis|3 years ago|reply
[+] [-] ashtonbaker|3 years ago|reply
That being said, I can't personally imagine taking the Apple Watch Ultra to, say, 80-90 feet if it's only rated to 130. It's just too expensive.
[+] [-] lolsoftware|3 years ago|reply
[1]: https://support.apple.com/kb/SP879?viewlocale=en_IN&locale=e....
[+] [-] jitl|3 years ago|reply
It’s rated as water resistant to 100m, 300+ feet - it’s just the software and measurement sensor bits that get queasy at 130ft.
The software APIs for measuring depth have an enum for this: https://developer.apple.com/documentation/coremotion/cmwater...
[+] [-] mschuster91|3 years ago|reply
I get the feeling of it being too expensive - but technically? If anything is to be expected from Apple, it is to under-promise on advertised specifications, and at least here in Europe, under consumer protection laws I can hold Apple accountable for not delivering upon their spec [1]. The hardest thing with anything underwater is pressure differential anyway - old analog watches have a lot of air inside which is compressible, which means you need strong seals and construction to avoid the pressure differential to simply crack the case. A modern digital watch however? Space is scarce so every cubic millimetre is packed with solid incompressible materials, making it way easier to withstand higher pressure.
[1] Actually had to do that with a CAT phone many years back when I worked in construction, a simple fall on a floor slab broke the screen. I made a backup (back then, that was actually feasible because rooting was easy, another personal gripe I have with recent Android), went up to the retailer and had it shipped in - a week later I had a brand new device and a written apology that the product was not up to spec.
[+] [-] stetrain|3 years ago|reply
The 40 meters / 130 feet rating is for the dive computer functionality.
[+] [-] raybb|3 years ago|reply
[+] [-] jitl|3 years ago|reply
[+] [-] jupp0r|3 years ago|reply
[+] [-] lolsoftware|3 years ago|reply
[+] [-] threeseed|3 years ago|reply
a) You never trust your life to any single device and there are always backup plans if something fails. And at recreational depths you're not going to do severe damage if your watch fails and you lose no decompression limit information.
b) The watch is such a joy to use underwater. It's 100x brighter and clearer than other devices so you see information at a glance. It actually made the whole diving experience better it was that good.
c) I've had Apple Watches since the original one and reliability has always been excellent. Easily on par with other dive computers. And of course the ease and quality of the user experience is significantly better.
[+] [-] scrumper|3 years ago|reply
[+] [-] latchkey|3 years ago|reply
Except for more advanced (deeper) dives, a dive computer is fairly unnecessary. 700 lbs of air pressure left, go back up, slowly.
I did most of my diving right off the coast of san diego, where there are amazing kelp forests. I preferred less deep dives (35-50 feet) anyway... you start going deep, you have much less air/time down below.
I would assume this to be a very tiny market for users.
[+] [-] jitl|3 years ago|reply
[+] [-] izacus|3 years ago|reply
For that reason the Apple Watch Ultra seems just fine - it doesn't seem to have any less features than my dedicated Suunto D5 (outside missing integration with air tank) and it seems to be a good competitor to Garmin's Descent MK2 series of diving computers (which are pretty amazing but cost 1200$+ with tank pods).
[+] [-] 9wzYQbTYsAIc|3 years ago|reply
Nonetheless, from the press release: “Always follow diving protocols and dive with a companion and have a secondary device.”
[+] [-] kshahkshah|3 years ago|reply
[+] [-] bitwrangler|3 years ago|reply
I'm curious to see what they have for using it with diver communication and collaboration. If one diver sees something of interest, they can easily notify other divers. I'm not sure if or how well Bluetooth works underwater?
The haptic vibration would be useful to notify about reaching maximum bottom time, and for decompression rest stops while ascending.
But I think I would still keep my traditional dive computer next to pressure gauge in my diving setup.
I wonder if they will have a wireless pressure sensor on the tank so you can also track air pressure and consumption? That would be neat.
[+] [-] jonfw|3 years ago|reply
If you're a casual diver (i.e. two dives a day on vacation, maybe a night dive here and there) you don't need a computer at all
[+] [-] TreeRingCounter|3 years ago|reply
[+] [-] dagmx|3 years ago|reply
[+] [-] isitmadeofglass|3 years ago|reply
The term “Dive computer” is not something to be taken lightly. It’s hardware you literally depend on to keep you alive during a dive. The fact that Apple is supporting this externally developed app says they have a very higher level of trust in their hardware.
Typically a dive computer would cost more than an Apple Watch and be a single purpose device. The fact that Apple is entering the arena is quite a disruption as other brands will be forced to either compete on price or really raise the bar on innovation to justify their current levels.
[+] [-] capableweb|3 years ago|reply
It does seem like Apple was involved though, so I guess it's not really 100% 3rd-party either. Maybe we can call it 2nd-party?
> Designed by Huish Outdoors in collaboration with Apple,
[+] [-] foxandmouse|3 years ago|reply
Unfortunately I don't have enough domain knowledge to do a comparison.
[+] [-] apetresc|3 years ago|reply
I guess it's possible that Subsurface might add support for visualizing logs from Oceanic+.
[+] [-] maratc|3 years ago|reply
First, there's no mention of Nitrox anywhere (except in a screenshot). Most of the serious folks use this mix (basically, air enriched with some more oxygen) for their dives, it's unclear if — or to what extent — this supports Nitrox.
Second, there's no mention of the decompression algorithm they use. Buhlmann, Suunto RGBM, VPM are examples of algorithms where the assumptions about human physiology are backed by hundreds of thousands of dives, but what is driving this specific piece is kind of a mystery. As this device comes under "life support equipment" category, I would love to see more information about that.
Third, battery life is a concern here, while it almost never is with dedicated dive computers. My main device requires a trip to Switzerland every 10-15 years, and my backup device is serviced locally every 3 years or so; having a "two full days battery life" somewhat pales in comparison.
Finally, $10 a month is pretty expensive, especially when it comes on top of $700 down payment. Unclear what happens when you stop paying. I don't doubt that there are people who don't worry about that kind of money: the watch blogs are full with people discussing diving with their Rolexes and Omegas, but I have never seen anyone doing that in real world. 90% of the people use dive computers (owned or rented), and 90% of the rest use basic G-Shocks; you are lucky to see anyone with a mechanical timepiece (which almost always happens to be made by Seiko).
[+] [-] izacus|3 years ago|reply
For those people it makes more sense - no need to carry another dive computer, no need to buy another device and the battery will be just fine for two/three dives in a day.
More serious people will still get their Shearwaters/Garmins and other devices. Although, Apple might cause those companies to go out of business eventually and you'll have to buy their subscription for your sport in a few years anyway :)
[+] [-] dag11|3 years ago|reply
[0] https://www.oceanicworldwide.com/oceanic-plus-in-depth/#:~:t...
[+] [-] maerten|3 years ago|reply
[+] [-] ddoolin|3 years ago|reply
[+] [-] sfusato|3 years ago|reply
[+] [-] chson|3 years ago|reply
[+] [-] mynameisvlad|3 years ago|reply
Huish, the makers of this app, own the majority of big names in the industry. The reason it’s called Oceanic+ is because they own Oceanic. Along with Apollo, Bare, Ollis, Zeagle and a few others. Interestingly, they don’t believe enough in this app to brand it Suunto, their more current dive watch brand.
My fear is the next Suunto watch will have subscriptions, if this app proves successful.
[+] [-] shkkmo|3 years ago|reply
[+] [-] aynyc|3 years ago|reply
I just looked at the screen shots in the article, nothing that different than my old dive computer. If I go back to being a regular recreational diver, I probably would get that watch and app.
[+] [-] kh_hk|3 years ago|reply
As a diver it's clear to me that the target audience are future divers. We might delude ourselves on the pros and cons of our current dive computer, models and so on. But I am sure someone entering the sport will consider this along the other options.
My personal opinion, a big majority of recreational (shallow) diving does not even require a dive computer and it all comes into LARPing territory. It's good to know your depth and the time you spent underwater, that's all. I have seen people wearing a +1k USD dive computer diving at most <20m. Of course it's none of my business how they decide to part with their money.
This much money will give you a very nice dive computer, albeit terribly complex and completely overkill for most of the rec. diving. If someone is willing to spend that much on a dive computer for rec diving, I guess an apple watch is money better spent? Let's just acknowledge that a Shearwater Perdix is a tough sell to someone that wants to spend this much but dives very very occasionally and shallow.
I am just sad about the subscription model and the implications this might have if/when it proves successful.
[+] [-] tyho|3 years ago|reply
The first problem is battery life. I didn't have to replace the battery on my computer for the 20 dives over a week I did recently. If I had gotten a low battery warning, I could have replaced the coin cell battery in five minutes. With the Apple Watch, I would be uncomfortable starting a dive with less than 80% battery, which means remembering to charge it before every dive. If I forget to charge it, then I cannot quickly replace the battery, and I cannot switch to a backup computer if I hadn't taken it with me on my previous dives as it wouldn't know my tissue loading. Forgetting to charge the watch before any dive would mean missing the dive.
The 40m limit is not a good idea. I imagine Apple's legal department are forcing this one, but it's a really bad idea. I went slightly below 40m a few times last week, I know that breaks "the rules", but I know the risks and they honestly aren't that bad if you don't push things too far. Having my computer lock out, refuse to give me NDL times, depth info or deco stop info if needed is not a good idea, especially when you really need it at those depths.
There is also no mention of nitrox, so I assume it's not supported. That would make this the only dive computer released in the last decade that doesn't support nitrox diving. Nobody who is interested in owning a dive computer will want a computer that doesn't support nitrox.
The one good thing I see about this is the haptics. It's really easy to get alert fatigue underwater from other dive computers beeping around you. Haptics would be far better.
[+] [-] Terretta|3 years ago|reply
You'd get over that quickly if you owned this watch. It stays above 80% all the time, with just a few minutes on a mag charge in AM, while you're showering for example, and a few minutes in the evening (during a TV show or video game, for example), even when using it all day for work notifications and all night as a sleep monitor.
It goes 2 or 3 days without charge, and that's before their software update to get a multiple of that. Assuming a 30W+ charger brick, it's surprising how quickly it tops back to 80% ready to go another day or two. Workout mode doesn't burn much more, neither does dive.
Your other takes could improve with actual use as well. Nitrox and gas config, for example, is on the 2nd to last and last screenshots of the watch app itself.
[+] [-] belorn|3 years ago|reply
If a person accidental loose buoyancy for a moment and end up at 41 meters, they could really end up in a terrible situation. The added stress, not being able to monitor ascent rate, and no information regarding NDL (the no decompression limit).
Humans can't survive on their own under water. Visiting there require equipment designed for that purpose. They don't need to be expensive but they do need to do the job. A 90% functional diving equipment can easily result in 100% dead diver.
[+] [-] gjsman-1000|3 years ago|reply
Dive computer? OK... that makes way more sense...
[+] [-] raydiatian|3 years ago|reply
This is perfect, as the limit for nitrox diving (ie the most frequently used mixture of gas for recreational dives) is a little over 130 ft.
[+] [-] hnbear|3 years ago|reply
[+] [-] ChrisMarshallNY|3 years ago|reply
[+] [-] maeln|3 years ago|reply
edit: so the apple watch ultra has a WR of 100m. I stand corrected.
[+] [-] tiffanyh|3 years ago|reply
The title should be renamed "Available today, the Oceanic+ app on Apple Watch Ultra"
Because the current title of "Apple Introduces Oceanic+" implies this is a 1st party app from Apple, which it is not.
[+] [-] Kukumber|3 years ago|reply
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