Dive Computer Brawl

Not to criticize or anything, but I;ve never understood why everyone is so intent on geting out of the water so fast. Perhaps conservatism is a good thing.

Ryan,

My take is ... I want to know the soonest that I can get out of the water and I usually add a safety margin on top of that. My safety margin is a combination of things, but it usually consists of waiting for my open circuit buddies to clear their dive computers.

Some ProLog screen shots and free getting started with Prolog Guide at

http://www.vr3.co.uk/vr3/main.php?content=prolog

I will try to post some screen shots of ProLog and NiTek Logic in the near future.

The VR3 logbook has an interactive display with the dive plot. If you loose battery power in the dive computer, you will loose your downloadable dive information. I replace my VR3 battery quite often, but I have never had to replace a battery in a NiTek 3 or He.

[Gary]

I will try to post some screen shots of ProLog and NiTek Logic in the near future.

The VR3 logbook has an interactive display with the dive plot. If you loose battery power in the dive computer, you will loose your downloadable dive information. I replace my VR3 battery quite often, but I have never had to replace a battery in a NiTek 3 or He.

Great information Chip - thanks.

So which computer do you prefer - the HE or the VR3?

I've got 1000 dives stored in Bridge dive logs that I can't seem to import anywhere else and I plan on changing over to something at the 1000 dive point that will last me the next 1000 dives.

Anyone know of any dive logs that can import CSV or tab delimited values? (or any other data format for that matter.)

(and please do post more screen shots - it seems that those 3 are hardly the whole story)

[IowaCaveDiver]

I've dove both computers you're looking at and have a word to say about each.... I first owned a cochran, and still do, it makes a great paper weight. I bought it because it was a cheaper option for a two gas nitrox computer and I got it used. I dove it for about a year and then one day before doing a dive for work, my boat captain got on the topic of dive computers and how he hated Cochrans... I walked into the bridge and quietly said.... "I dive a cochran....and I love it... i think".... believe it or not....no crap, the computer died on that very dive..... it didn't turn on when I hit the water and I noticed it about 20' down...i played with the contacts and got it to turn on, then it immediatly turned off and continued to go on and off for the whole dive... I changed the battery when I got home and it still doesn't work to this day. cochran was really crappy about helping me in any way... they said they would upgrade me to a new one for a few hundred bucks, but I figured why would i want another after this one died on me?
I bought a nitek duo (watch style two gas nitrox computer) shortly after that dive without knowing much about them. I absolutly love this computer. I put over 300 dives on it this summer season working as crew on a dive boat and I couldn't ask for a better computer for what I do. Easy to switch gases, easy to use, easy to read, and very very reliable. The only trouble i've had with it is that the temperature guage on occassion would read 32 degrees... I sent it in this past fall after our dive season was over and I got a brand new one back two weeks later. Great product, great company!
Good luck on your search, there are a lot of them out there!
-Matt

So which computer do you prefer - the HE or the VR3?

The VR3, no question about it! Most of my dives are closed circuit and the HE only does open circuit. You can use the HE to model your gas profile, and do lots of gas switches in close circuit mode, but why. The VR3 also has an option for an external oxygen sensor connection, which I use. With this, the VR3 calculates decompression based upon the gas in my loop. It also serves as a backup PO2 monitor. The VR3 is software upgradeable, it supports 10 gas mixes (which can be changed underwater) and the list goes on.

The NiTek He is a nice trimix computer, but it's not a VR3. It will be very interesting to see if Dive Rite comes out with a close / open circuit trimix dive computer in the near future. Their new closed circuit rebreather will use the Hammerhead electronics (built-in trimix computer), but will the NiTek He evolve?

[DeWayne]

Does anyone know WHEN the VR3 is going to have VPM in it? And will it be original VPM, or VPM-B?

Email to the VR3 folks over on the other side of the pond has gone unanswered.....

I've been waiting to hear something more definitive on that as well. Rumor mill says VPM-B due out this spring but then they say check with the folks across the pond to be sure. Would definitely like to have one if they do put the VPM-B in it any time soon.

[Genesis]

I'd buy one tomorrow if it had VPM-B in it.

Even if I go to the dark side (CCR) this spring when DR comes out with their unit, it's still useful as a backup decompression computer, and VPM is my preferred algo for deco - at least so far

Anyone use the download and Prolog divelog for the VR3?
I'm looking for any info on Prolog - opinion/ screenshots/ anything.

How about the dive rite download software?

Thanks

The NiTek He is a very nice trimix computer. It allows you to dive with air, nitrox, heliox, trimix and / or oxygen. You can set up to seven different gas mixes per dive and it can also be used in gauge mode. The FO2 can be set for 8% to 99%. The NiTek He displays your current PO2 during your dive. It comes with excellent customer service from Dive Rite, for original owner warrantee work (I’m not sure if the warrantee transfers for used computers). The NiTek He has a battery which lasts for a long time, and it’s easier to setup and use, because it doesn’t have as much functionality as the VR3.

Dive Rite Dive Computer Comparison Chart:

http://diverite.com/products/nitek/compare.htm

Free NiTek Logic download:

http://diverite.com/products/nitek/logic.htm

You have the option of downloading the full version of NiTekLogic 3.06 (1.6 meg), or the update - to upgrade your existing version of NiTekLogic to Version 3.06 (1.5 meg).

I originally downloaded the update and it didn’t convert my log files properly, so I downloaded the full version. Since I couldn’t get my log files converted, I just downloaded the current dives off my NiTek 3 and NiTek He to use for the screen shots.

NiTek Logic Version 3.06 works with the following dive computers:

Bridge II
Nitek (first generation)
Nitek 3
Nitek Plus
Nitek He
NiTek Plus USB

Requested screen shots:

http://cavediver.net/photopost/showp...medium&cat=501
http://cavediver.net/photopost/showp...cat=500&page=2
http://cavediver.net/photopost/showp...cat=500&page=2
http://cavediver.net/photopost/showp...cat=500&page=2
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[Gary]

Thanks Chip. Awesome really.

Dive Rite allows free download and has fairly good display of their software online. Truely it is the VR3 "Prolog" screenshots that would be of the most use since they have very little about thier software even in the directions for use.


And someone was asking: I saw that David Shaw's webpage had rumored a VPM model of the VR3 comming spring 2005.

Truely it is the VR3 "Prolog" screenshots that would be of the most use since they have very little about thier software even in the directions for use.

VR3 features:

http://cavediver.net/photopost/showp...cat=501&page=1

ProDive (also known as Prolog) features:

http://www.mssystems.co.uk/prodive/pdpromo1/

VR3 ProDive download software screen shots:

http://cavediver.net/photopost/showp...cat=501&page=1
http://cavediver.net/photopost/showp...cat=501&page=1
http://cavediver.net/photopost/showp...cat=501&page=1
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