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Comment by alphakilo | Hacker News Reader

Echoing others, I don't think this will have a huge impact as iPhone SOS is a last resort for those who are unprepared

Garmin inReach is a robust and rugged satellite communicator that out classes iPhone emergency SOS greatly

- inreach doesn't require "tracking" the satellite as it has a stronger antenna - inreach is more waterproof, dust proof atd shock resistant (no touch screen) - inreach has higher battery life, SOS can be activated while the device is off - ability to send messages, which can be critical if there are no cell towers that can be boosned/activated

That said, it is a great innovation; I think the Apple Watch Ultra will cut more into the diving watch market than the iPhone into the satellite communicator market

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Just like the best camera is the one you actually have with you, the best rescue device is the one you actually have with you. And for many people, that’s not going to be a Garmin inReach because they don’t own a device and they don’t have a subscription to the service.

> Garmin inReach is a robust and rugged satellite communicator

I own one and when I brought it on a remote expedition I found it to be a buggy POS: duplicated messages, stuck connection requiring resets, garbled messages.

That being said, the current iPhone 14 satellite function wouldn’t have worked at all for my purpose in those circumstances.

I don’t see the market for a high end dive watch without air integration, but with the UX they have.

The people that don’t care about AI dive with a perdix or tables, but basically require something you can operate with gloves on. The rest of them with the money for a nice watch really want AI.

"perdix or tables" those are starkly different options. do you know a lot of people who still dive with tables?

Yeah, like everyone that dives with GUE, I plan my dives and dive tables and a bottom timer.

Many GUE divers do use dive computers. There's nothing wrong with that as long as you don't rely on the computer for anything safety critical.

Most dive computers make it difficult or impossible to do dive planning for more complex scenarios. For example, the Garmin Descent Mk2 has a Plan Dive activity profile. But it only supports square profile dives, doesn't properly handle travel gas, and doesn't generate contingency plans for loss of deco gas. So we have to do dive planning with other software that can generate tables.

https://youtu.be/SHva-wG7w0Q

https://www8.garmin.com/manuals/webhelp/GUID-120241CE-9583-4...

Garmin sells a high-end dive watch without air integration as the Descent Mk2 / Mk2S. They also have the Mk2i with AI. They don't release sales numbers so it's not clear how well those products are doing in the market.

Personally I use the Mk2 because I mostly do technical dives and have little use for AI, but divers like me are a tiny market niche. The latest Shearwater Perdix models do support AI. If Garmin launches a Descent "Mk3" product line as expected next year it might include AI as a standard feature across all models.

Ah, yes the garmin watches are nice as well. I swear they just added the AI to the perdix line to catch the super rich gear nerd + rec diver market, because who needs a multi-gas full deco computer and is going to use AI.

Eh, I've been thinking about getting one of the Garmin dive watches but the stupid subscription for apples is more of a deal breaker than the air integration.

Apple watch with dive computer and air integration though would be awesome. Garmins is $1500 (+700$) so the margin should be there.

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