Hi, welcome to Scuba Diver, a gear guide test extra. All divers love, shiny new kit. And
every episode we'll be looking at new releases to market from all the major manufacturers.
Now, remember, if you like what we're doing, hit the subscribe button, ring that bell,
you'll never miss out on any future installment. So, without further ado, let's see what came
through the post this week. Now Canadian companies Shearwater Research
has rapidly carved itself a niche for high performing, robust, and perhaps most importantly,
user-friendly dive computers. The petrol, when that came out, gained a legion of followers
as did the Perdix AI that followed it and the Teric Wristwatch Computer. The NERD 2
heads-up-display that also went down a storm. Now, one of the things I particularly liked
about the Perdix AI and Teric was that while there were supremely capable dive computers
with abilities and features that would sit in the desires of even the most hardened technical
diver, they were also so easy to use, even a novice diver could just get hold of it,
put it into recreational mode and go diving. The fact that as the diver progressed in the
diving career, the computer could easily grow with them, was a major plus point in my eyes
and that ability to come up with recreational and often circuit closed-circuit technical
diving, could offset the purchase cost of the unit in the first place.
However, there were plenty of people out there who just want to pootle along a pretty coral
reef and never stray out a recreational dive in depth. For them, that sort of outlay for
a dive computer that's capable of doing far more than they're ever going to dream of doing,
perhaps just isn't worth the investment. And that is where the Peregrine comes in. The
Peregrine is still a very capable decompression computer. It's got four diving mode, straightforward
air mode, single Nitrox that you can use up to a 40%, three-gas switchable Nitrox, which
it goes up to 100% and then a gauge mode for the techies, which means it can easily deal
with entry level technical diving and beyond, in gauge mode if necessary.
The navigation system on the Peregrine is just the same as on the Perdix AI, apart from
the fact that this time around you got some nice stainless steel buttons on the side here
that have a real nice feel to them and they're easy to use even with dry gloves on. Now the
menu on the Peregrine is very intuitive. Even a new user could be happily bouncing around
the different areas in just a few minutes. And it even tells you at each point where
you are, very easy to get through, just you don't even need to try and look at any instructions.
You can just have a play around and as I say, a few minutes and you'll be navigating it
like pro. I particularly like the visual and vibration
alerts on the Peregrine. I mean, I tend to switch off audible alarms, not that this one
has any anyways, they just tend to bug me, but the vibrations great. You can easily feel
it even through a wetsuit or even a dry suit. So what's the major difference between the
Perdix AI and the Peregrine? Well, other than the aforementioned tech diving features the
big two, are no compass and no air integration. But look at that price. If you want air integration
and a compass, as well as the additional tech options, then go for a Perdix AI, all the
Teric. But if these two features aren't vital to you, the Peregrine really does make a solid
choice. It comes in a zipper protective case, like the Perdix AI and the Teric. On opening
it, it's got a zipper section in the lid and and that is where you find the charging cable.
And they also include a little checklist in there with hand-signed checks so that you
know it's being quality insured. And I guess a short cheat sheet in there as well explaining
how to charge a unit, attach the straps, et cetera. Now, in the main compartment area
here, that was where you found the Peregrine nestled in here. Now at the moment, it obviously
won't fit into that form because I've got the strap on it.
It's this dense foam surround gives it a nice little protective layer when it's new and
you lift it out, and then the rubber strap was all coiled around the outside around here.
And then this is where you also find on the back over here, this is the neat stuff I love
from Shearwater, is you got the spindles that were holding the strap on and the tools to
put it on are all embedded into the back and then inside this form, when you opened it
up, that is the cable charging station. So you basically plug the cable in there, flat
the [inaudible 00:04:40], sit that down, put the Peregrine on the top and then it just
charges away like that. You don't have to hold it in place. You don't have to clip it
on. You don't have to open anything. It's a fantastic design.
Now, as I said before, I went for the rubber strap. I've never really been fond of the
elasticated bungee version, but I have to say that I still prefer the elastic and pinch
clip strap that comes on the Perdix AI than the rubber strap. But I have to say, their
rubber strap's still nice and robust. And if you want to pimp your Peregrine, you can
also get two color ways, ocean blue and white for the strap so you can make it stand out
from the crowd. So, that's the Shearwater Peregrine.
What do I think of it? Another solid outing from Shearwater, has to be said. They've just
built on their strengths and produced a computer that filled the niche in their lineup. As
we said, if you want all the extras, they've already got computers out there that could
deal with that. Like the Perdix AI or the Teric, but if you are just looking for a solid
dive computer with a very easy to read screen that's got plenty of options that can cope
with if you're entry level diving and even entry level tech, then the Peregrine is definitely
worth a look at. Well done Shearwater. So, that's the Shearwater Peregrine. Hope
you found that review useful. If you liked it, give us a thumbs up, leave your comments
in the box. We always like to see what our fans are saying. Remember, subscribe, hit
that bell, and then you'll never miss out on any future installments. Next we're going
to be looking at the new XD regulator, which has been a long time in development, well
is well worth checking out. So enjoy safe, dive in and we'll catch you soon.