It hasn’t been that many years
since you could look around a
dive boat between dives and see
divers who were wracking their
brains, desperately trying to recall
how to work surface intervals into
repetitive nitrogen times. They
didn’t want to let on, of course,
that they didn’t have a clue about
how to go about it, but they were
easily recognizable by their
hunched positions as they bent
over their tiny plastic tables,
praying for inspiration.
Then, in 1983, Orca Industries
introduced the Edge, and
multilevel diving and dive computers
were in. I jumped on the
bandwagon immediately. Sure,
the unit had a few weak links: the
battery compartment flooded too
often and it ate 9-volt batteries the
way a kid eats candy, but it was
easy to use, and the increased
bottom time made the $675 price
tag look reasonable. Hell, it was
more than reasonable: it was
wonderful. It changed diving.
Within a few years of the
Edge’s introduction, technological
developments and a multitude
of other manufacturers reduced
dive computers’ size from the
Edge’s hefty 1.6 pounds down to
wrist models and console inserts.
The reduction prompted some
sardonic postings on online scuba
groups suggesting “One Hundred
Things to Do with the Brick
(Edge).”
Orca developed a smaller,
cheaper version, the Skinny
Dipper, which was plagued by
battery problems, then pioneered
the Delphi, an air-integrated unit.
Unfortunately, early editions of
the Delphi had some problems
with the high-pressure sensors that undercut its marketability.
EIT, Inc., an electronics firm
based in Virginia, bought Orca in
the early nineties and retooled
the Skinny Dipper into the
Marathon and the Delphi into the
Phoenix. They dropped production
of the Edge although they
continued to service the units. In
recent years they added the Pilot,
a line of dive computers manufactured
for them in Finland.
Now, however, it sounds like
EIT has discovered what most of
us already knew: the best way to
make a small fortune in the dive
business is to start with a large
one. The company’s made a
bottom-line decision to effectively
get out of the scuba market and
concentrate its efforts in the
industrial electronics sector.
My hat is off to Karl Huggins,
Craig Barshinger, and all of the
others who were involved in
developing and bringing the
original Edge to market. Your
development marked a turning
point in dive technology, one that revolutionized the way most of us
dive today. It’s a testimonial to you
that I could sell my Edge today for
more than I paid for it 16 years
ago. Commercial divers who
believe in its tested algorithms
and appreciate its large display
will pay top dollar if they find
someone willing to let go of their
brick. Sorry to disappoint them,
but I’m hanging on to mine to the
bitter end, which doesn’t seem to
be that far away.
— John Q. Trigger