The Deepblu Cosmiq+ Dive Computer is part of our list of the best dive computers 2022 and here is our in-depth review of this new device.
First impressions of the Deepblu Cosmiq+ Dive Computer
When unpacking the Cosmiq+ dive computer I was really impressed by the attention to little extras given by Deepblu.
From the little “Keep calm and dive on” address tag for your suitcase to the nicely done graphics on the cardboard surrounding the case containing the computer with extras.
Opening that case revealed that the insides kept true to the quality impression, with every part fitting perfectly in the provided slot.
I admit this might not really be important to the quality of the actual dive computer but I couldn’t help but be impressed by the attention to detail in this area.
Deepblu supplied the computer together with two different wrist bands of high quality (camo pattern and black) as well as a length of bungee cord for us cold water dry suit divers that cannot really operate wrist bands with gloves on.
Also supplied was a solid seeming charger cable (its a sort of magnetic cable that locks into place, very nice) and two screen protectors similar to what you might use on your phone.
Overall it was the best first impression any gadget has made on me in many years. Well done Deepblu!
Setting up the Computer with the Deepblu Diving App
Getting started took a bit longer than expected. Most settings are only available through the Deepblu Diving App. In my case this meant downloading the (obviously free) app to my Android phone.
When connecting the phone to the dive computer over Bluetooth I had to mess around for a few minutes making the phone and computer connect to each other. Once I figured out not to connect the phone manually through settings but rather let the app do the job, everything was fine though.
It is easy enough to set the computer up through the app. There arent really that many options available to begin with and all the standard options are very easy to set once you are connected with the app.
The Deepblu app itself is not exclusive to the Cosmiq+ dive computer but also boasts a dive community of more than 50.000 users.
You can upload and comment your logs in here, add new dive sites and overall it seems the app tries to be a bit of a social hub for divers.
I easily found some dive buddies that were already in the app and could add them as friends and be notified when they add new dive logs, trip reports and so on.
Most of these functions in the app work well enough, although they are perhaps not yet truly outstanding. I felt like the app constantly tried selling me liveaboard trips and tell me about exotic dive sites all around the globe, when all I wanted was to change the gas setting from air to nitrox or perhaps look at my latest dive log to see what the maximum depth was.
This has been a bit of a turnoff for me and I soon stopped using the app for dive logs and just open it when I really need to change some setting in the computer.
Diving with the Cosmiq+ Computer
So after unpacking it and setting everything up through the app it was finally time to dive with the Cosmiq+. Fortunately Deepblu had supplied the computer with a length of bungee cord, and instructions on how to mount the computer using it.
This is more than can be said for several, huge competitors (some even sell you rather pricey bungee mounts as an accessory). Diving in Swedish early summer means temperatures of perhaps 10° celsius at the surface and 4 degrees at depth.
This means that a dry suit and thick gloves are a must, which makes using bungee cord instead of a wrist band pretty much a given. I think Deepblu’s attention to detail in this regard is commendable and something their competition should take note of.
Nice and Bright OLED Screen
In the water I immediately noted that the screen was nice and bright. Having only had “regular” screens on my previous dive computers having a hi-def OLED with constant backlight was a real treat and I believe I will never be able to go back to the old style screens again.
Numbers are easy to read, but the separators are small so the difference between 21 and 2,1 for instance is not all that easy to see. Also the labels for the different numbers like “dive time”, “depth” are tiny and a bit difficult to read.
Obviously this will not be needed once having gotten to know the computer, but makes it a bit cumbersome the first couple of dives (don’t want to mix up my no deco limit with current depth or temperature). Please take note of that the trial dives were made in Sweden, with visibility ranging from about 50cm to 5 meters. It might well be easier to read the screen in clear waters.
My Main Peeves: The modified Algorithm
One thing I noticed was that the computer seemed to penalise repetitive diving rather heavily. On one excursion dive number one was about an hour at 14 meters. The following dive was to about 22 meters after just over an hours worth of surface interval, and the allowed bottom time was quite a lot shorter than I am used to from other computers.
This brings me to one of my main peeves with the Cosmiq+ computer. The algorithm is a modified Bühlmann. Meaning you cannot really make any detailed dive plans in advance or even have a faint idea how your computer will behave compared to your friends using other algorithms.
As I am used to looking into planning software in advance and play around with different settings of conservatism to plan dive days this really is quite a drawback. However most people diving 2 dives within no-deco limits probably won’t care nearly as much.
Overall i enjoyed diving with the Deepblu Cosmiq+ and will keep using it for regular sport dives that do not require any gas changes or similar.
Final verdict
The Deepblu Cosmiq+ is a really nice computer for regular sport/recreational diving. It comes with a nice bright screen, rechargeable batteries, Bluetooth support and a bunch of extras in the box. These features are really great and almost unheard of at this pricepoint.
It works surprisingly well with the supplied bungee cord on a drysuit in cold waters.
The main drawback is the use of an algorithm that cannot be planned for in popular dive software. This makes it a bad choice for deco diving or any other diving where it is important to make the most of your available bottom time.
The app could do with some improvements, and it would be nice to be able to change more settings directly. But overall it works out ok. Deepblu shows unusual attention to detail with everything else concerning their products so I have faith the software will keep getting better.
Overall, at this pricepoint it is most definitely worth taking a very close look at!