🏆 The 4 dive computers in detail
#1
🏆 Best value
Cressi Leonardo
The number one choice to start diving without overspending. One button, a large backlit display and the essentials: air, nitrox and gauge modes. A good fit for Open Water and Advanced Open Water divers who dive a single gas.
✅ Pros
- · Single button, nothing to learn
- · Large display with big digits
- · Air, nitrox (21 to 50% O₂) and gauge modes
- · Cressi RGBM algorithm
❌ Cons
- · One gas mix per dive
- · No built-in Bluetooth (interface sold separately)
One buttonAir / NitroxCressi RGBMCR2430 battery
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🎯 Simple and connected
Mares Puck 4
A dive-centre classic brought up to date: a single button, an easy-to-read screen, and now Bluetooth with the Mares app to download your dives. It can be worn on the wrist or mounted in a console.
✅ Pros
- · Bühlmann algorithm with gradient factors
- · Air and nitrox, up to 3 gases
- · Bluetooth and Mares app
- · User-replaceable CR2450 battery (about 100 dives)
❌ Cons
- · Single-button navigation
- · No colour screen
Bühlmann3 gasesBluetoothOne button
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⚡ Rechargeable colour screen
Aqualung i330R
The most feature-rich computer in this selection: a very bright colour screen, a rechargeable battery and up to three nitrox mixes. A lasting purchase that keeps up as you progress.
✅ Pros
- · Up to 3 nitrox mixes
- · Rechargeable battery
- · Very bright colour screen
- · Bluetooth for your logbook in the app
❌ Cons
- · Battery has to be charged before each dive day
- · Proprietary charging cable, not USB-C
Colour screenRechargeable3 nitrox mixesBluetooth
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🖥️ Big screen
Cressi Raffaello
Cressi's step up from the Leonardo. Its strong point is a large, high-contrast backlit display, with air and nitrox up to three mixes, plus gauge and freediving modes. The battery can be replaced by the user, and the Amazon listing mentions a built-in digital compass.
✅ Pros
- · Large, high-contrast backlit display
- · Air and nitrox, up to 3 mixes
- · Gauge and freediving modes
- · User-replaceable battery
❌ Cons
- · The most expensive of the four
- · Several colour versions: check the one you order
Big screen3 mixesFreedive modeReplaceable battery
Check price on Amazon →🧭 How to choose a first dive computer
1. Readability comes first
Digit size and contrast are what you actually look at in murky water, at the moment your attention drops – and UK visibility is often limited. A large, clear display matters more than a long feature list.
2. Make sure it does nitrox
Even if you dive on air today, you will want nitrox as you progress. All four computers here handle it; the Leonardo manages one mix per dive, the other three up to three.
3. Replaceable battery or rechargeable?
A coin cell you can change yourself lasts for many dives and never needs a socket, which is handy on a liveaboard. A rechargeable battery like the Aqualung i330R's means no battery to buy, but you have to recharge it regularly on a dive trip.
4. Think about gloves
In cold water you will be wearing thick gloves or dry gloves. A single large button, as on the Leonardo and the Puck 4, is easy to press; check that you can reach every screen you need without fiddly combinations.
5. One computer per diver
A dive computer tracks the nitrogen loading of the person wearing it. Never share one between two divers or lend it between dives, and always follow your own computer rather than your buddy's.
❓ Frequently asked questions
What is the best budget dive computer for a beginner?
The Cressi Leonardo is the simplest of this selection: one button, a large display, air and nitrox. If you want Bluetooth and up to three gases at a similar price, the Mares Puck 4 is the alternative.
Is a cheap dive computer safe?
Price does not change the core job: every computer here tracks depth and time and calculates no-decompression limits with an established algorithm (Cressi RGBM on the Cressi models, Bühlmann with gradient factors on the Mares Puck 4). What a higher budget buys is screen quality, more gases, connectivity and comfort. Dive within your training and follow the computer.
Do I need nitrox on my first dive computer?
It is worth having. Nitrox certification is a common next step after Open Water or Ocean Diver, and a computer without it would have to be replaced. All four models in this guide support nitrox.
Which of these computers has a colour screen?
Only the Aqualung i330R. It is also the only rechargeable model here; the other three run on a battery you can replace yourself.
How long does the battery of a dive computer last?
It depends on the type. Mares states about 100 dives for the Puck 4's CR2450 coin cell. The Aqualung i330R is rechargeable and is topped up regularly with the cable supplied.