Title is misleading. This is a third party application for the Apple Watch Ultra that is being highlighted, not an Apple product itself.
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.
Also, since you are trusting your life to the waterproofing of the watch, a EDC watch that takes abuse all day that could compromise that waterproofing seems like a bit of a risk unless it is only being used as a secondary / backup dive computer.
There are also thousands of cooler things that would bring you more views than an AWU in any typical tropical dive.
Because this post is pure sarcasm with nothing of value to add except for mocking people you disagree with.
> Do you guys love Instagram or something?
Nope. Hate it - but I don't feel the need to go spewing that hate over a tangentially related thread which has actual interesting discussion.
All this “trusting your life” stuff is pretty overblown for rec diving. You have a buddy who has a computer and probably a dive guide, you’re not going that deep, worst case scenario if it fails on a dive just swim a bit shallower than the guide (after signaling them) and sit out the next one. Or dive tables. You can ascend without a computer, and you can make an overkill safety stop (or just buddy up) without a computer.
Although, Apple Watch Ultra will be very competitive against devices like Garmin Descent or Suunto D5.
In general, divers there weren't a very wealthy bunch and didn't really run around with 800$+ tech gadgets (although some of us/them did have more expensive computers).
So it's far more capable than just a dive computer.
And again it doesn't require an ongoing subscription you just turn on/off as you need it.
This is all rec diving (<= 40m). I would never, ever use an Apple device for tech diving, even if some future version is rated for it.
This is the part I don't really understand, unless this app was completely developed out-of-house. How large an arena is this really? Are there really that many potential customers who are both divers and haven't bought an Apple watch? Is there some angle from the business side I'm missing here?
It helps the brand (if they can do that, my mundane daily life will be easy), it sells to wealthy enthusiasts and aspirational consumers, it brings people in to showrooms, and it challenges internal teams.
And in the Apple case, their ecosystem is strong. Recreational divers are Apple’s target market, and this should convert a bunch of them to Apple.
Imagining the pitch, it was probably something like limited incremental costs, supports long term ecosystem strategy, reduces revenue from cash cows for competing fitness watch companies.
Is there some angle from the business side I'm missing here?
We see this in all kinds of products, right? Among watch collectors, 200M diver style watches (from the Casio MDV106 all the way up to Rolex Submariners and beyond) are probably the most popular single style.
We see it in autos, with people buying vehicles with rugged capabilities they don't need. Or in shoes, with people buying athletic shoes for activities they don't partake in. A laptop with more CPU and RAM than they probably need. Etc.
From a purely logical standpoint this is silly, of course. And for some kinds of products like autos this level of excess is deeply wasteful.
However, I think what people are really buying is peace of mind and we all engage in this to some extent! It's simply nice to have a bit of gear so robust you don't have to worry about it!
“Introducing Oceanic+ for Apple Watch Ultra” is a better title as it removes the conventional idea of product ownership.
Whether or not Apple is directly involved in development is different, as they often have many different partners to showcase new product functionality, and none of those would be suited to “Apple Introduces X” titles either.
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,