New divers are faced with plenty of decisions. You want to begin diving as soon as possible, but you first need to decide what gear to buy, where you’ll go, and sometimes, who to dive with. But one thing is certain before you start, you’ll need to navigate the decision of Console vs. Wrist Mounted Dive Computer.
WRIST MOUNTED DIVE COMPUTER
Wrist mounted dive computers are smaller than consoles. They allow you to hold your camera or light while wearing the computer on the inside of your wrist and seeing your information. While wrist computers can be more convenient to wear, they can also be more difficult to read and handle if diving in cold water where gloves can interfere with operating a wrist-style dive computer, compared with a console that fits nicely in your hand.
However, wrist mounted dive computers can also be readily visible during your ascent when you dive with your hands out in front of you, giving you a dashboard of your information right before your eyes.
Perhaps the biggest advantage of a wrist mounted dive computer is that you can wear it wherever you go. It’s easier to pack for travel and allows you to use your own computer when you rent gear. Wrist mounted dive computers are often a more stylish option than console computers, and can come with air integration and a compass.
CONSOLE DIVE COMPUTER
Many advocates of console dive computers say consoles are more convenient than wrist mounted dive computers. Console screens are usually larger and easier to read, the buttons are easier to push, especially wearing thick gloves, and consoles are always attached to your regulator so your risk of leaving it at home or on a boat is almost non-existent.
But since a console is larger than a simple gauge, which many wrist mounted computer divers use in its place, some divers find it tedious to perform a safety stop holding onto a large console rather than simply checking their wrist.
A console allows you to check your depth, dive time, remaining dive time, heading (if you have a compass), remaining gas in your tank, and possibly more all at a single glance on the same unit. While most of this information is also available in a wrist mounted computer, it can cost more for extras.
AIR INTEGRATED
Both consoles and wrist mounted dive computers can be air integrated. Air integrated computers can read and show your cylinder pressure, eliminating the need for a pressure gauge. Some dive computers take the cylinder pressure reading a step further by calculating your remaining air at the current depth and exertion level.
Oceanic’s new Bluetooth-compatible console and wrist mounted computers allow you to track, manage and share all your dive data pre- and post-dive from the convenience of your mobile device, as well as sync with your PC or laptop to create a dive report that shows you the amount of air you were drawing from the cylinder at any time.
Still not sure what mounting style is better? Browse Oceanic’s line of computers and find the one that best suits you!