Mares Quad Air - 1.2. Operating Modes; 1.3. Battery, Connectivity, and Buttons; 1.5. Button Operation

Quad Air Dive Computer
4
1.2. OPERATING MODES
The functions of the Quad Air computer
can be grouped into three categories, each
corresponding to a specific mode of operation:
• surface mode: Quad Air is dry on the
surface. You can change settings, review
your logbook, use the dive planner, see
remaining desaturation after a dive,
download to PC and much more;
• dive mode: Quad Air monitors depth, time,
tank pressure, temperature and performs
all decompression calculations; dive
mode itself can be broken down into 4 sub
categories:
- pre-dive (Quad Air is on the surface but
actively monitoring ambient pressure, so
that it can begin to calculate a dive the
instant it is submerged below 1.2m/4ft);
- dive
- surfacing (Quad Air is on the surface at
the end of a dive; dive time calculation
is halted but if the diver submerges
within three minutes the dive is resumed
including the time spent on the surface);
- post-dive (after the three minutes of
surfacing mode, Quad Air closes the
logbook and reverts to a display showing
desaturation time, no-fly time and surface
interval; this lasts until the desaturation
and the no-fly time both have been
reduced to zero).
• sleep mode: the computer is on the
surface after 1 minute without operation
(3 minutes from pre-dive mode). Though
the computer appears to be turned off
completely, it is still active. Quad Air
computes tissue desaturation and checks
the ambient pressure once every 20
seconds for uninterrupted monitoring of the
environment.
1.3. USERREPLACEABLE BATTERY
Quad Air uses a CR2450 user-replaceable
battery. See section 4.2.1 for instructions on
how to replace it. Good quality batteries should
suffice for approx 100-150 dives, depending on
the usage of the backlight and the temperature
of the water. Diving in cold water, usage of the
backlight and of the beeper increases battery
consumption.
The display alerts you of the status of the
battery. The three possible situations are
described as follows:
- battery symbol not visible: the remaining
battery charge is adequate for diving;
- steady battery symbol on the display: there
is enough charge for a few more dives, but
you should consider replacing the battery at
the next opportunity;
- blinking battery symbol on the display
(surface only): the battery is too weak for
diving. Quad Air will not function as a dive
computer and will not turn on if submerged.
The level of the battery charge can also be
found on the “INFO” page (see section 2.6).
1.4. CONNECTING QUAD AIR TO A PC
OR MAC
To connect Quad Air to a PC or Macintosh
computer, use the optional clip and the USB
cable and Dive Organizer to download your
dives to a PC or Divers’ Diary to download your
dives to a Mac. Both software programs can be
downloaded from www.mares.com.
1.5. BUTTON OPERATION
Quad Air has 4 buttons, labelled UP, DOWN,
ESC and ENTER. On the surface, ENTER allows
you to enter a menu and confirm a setting, ESC
exits a menu and goes up one level, UP and
DOWN increase/decrease the value of a setting
or move to the next item in a list.
During the dive, there is no distinction between
left side and right side buttons, so that both
upper buttons become the UP button and both
lower buttons become the DOWN button. This
is called Specular Button Arrangement and
it simplifies the use of the computer. The UP
button modifies the top row (depth information)
whereas the DOWN button modifies the lower
right corner of the display. Press and hold the
UP button to activate the backlight.
An overview of the button function both in
surface mode and during a dive is presented in
the next figures.