Cressi Leonardo - The Best Budget Dive Computer (A Long Term Review)

After completing my PADI Advanced Open Water Course back in 2019, I bought my first dive computer right after. I did not know much about dive computers back then and bought a Cressi Leonardo because it was affordable. I have been scuba diving with it ever since and it has served me very well for several years so I think it deserves its own review! I was not paid for this review and I purchased this dive computer with my own money. Below I break down the 6 reasons why I think it’s the best budget dive computer for both beginners and experienced divers.

1. You can’t beat the price!

Scuba gear can get expensive very fast and not everyone has thousands to spend when starting to dive. It was very hard to find a good dive watch for under $300 but I paid around $267 CAD for my Cressi dive watch. The prices vary by colour and by country but even today, it is an unbeatable deal! You can order from Amazon or check out your local dive shop as they likely carry it since this model has been around for several years now. Dive shops often charge extra for dive computer rental (around $10 USD per dive) even when the dive equipment is included so in the long run, you will end up saving money.

2. You can use it as a beginner and experienced diver

With a maximum depth of 132 ft, this dive computer will serve you as a beginner and all the way to an experienced diver. If you decide to do your Advanced Open Water or Deep Diver specialty, you will be covered!

3. It has a Nitrox setting

This is related to my previous point. If you eventually plan to obtain your Nitrox certification, you are covered there too! You can activate the Nitrox option in the settings and dive as usual (I have linked the manual at the bottom of this article as it provides instructions on how to navigate the menu). In short, the Cressi Leonardo pretty much covers all your basic needs as a scuba diver and you don’t need to spend thousands of dollars.

4. The battery lasts for a very long time

You can dive for several days on a single battery. I usually only dive when I go on vacation and I replace the battery around once every year to two years. For a week of diving in the Maldives, a single battery was enough. The Cressi Leonardo also uses a non-proprietary CR2430 battery that is commonly available at pharmacies and small shops so even if you do run out, you can likely purchase one while on vacation. Otherwise order yourself a pack from Amazon and just leave it in your suitcase so you won’t need to worry about it.

5. It’s well built and tough

I have personally dropped my dive computer many times and sometimes I just toss it in my dive bag without a case or protective cover and it has stood up very well against the test of time. Also while diving on a boat, things tend to get chaotic and it's very easy to bump my dive computer with a tank or the side of the boat but there are still no cracks or scratches on it.

6. It has a backlight

The backlight is actually quite dim when using it outside so you won't really notice it when you're on the boat on a sunny day however once you're underwater you will definitely see the difference. The backlight makes the screen more legible during dives, specially on cloudy days or in water with poor visibility. It auto-switches off by itself after a few seconds.

Cons

Now it would be wrong to say this is the perfect dive watch. I have noticed a few downsides, though in my opinion the good outweighs the bad.
The first issue is that it is on the larger side for a dive watch. If you have small wrsits, the watch will seem extra bulky. It also gets snagged sometimes when putting on your BCD.

The other issue I’ve encountered is that the menu can be a bit difficult to navigate with a single button. There is no bluetooth connectivity if you’d like to sync the logs to your phone but I think all of that is overkill anyway, I really just need the dive watch to keep me safe underwater and during my surface intervals. You can copy over the dive logs into the SSI App after your dive as it records the last 20 dives or so in the log.

To summarise, this dive watch has all the basic functions you will ever need as an Open Water or Advanced Open Water Scuba Diver (including Nitrox) at a great price!

You can download a PDF copy of the manual here. I suggest saving it on your phone so you always have it with you when going on a dive drip. It has helped me out countless times, specially when I need to reconfigure the settings and can’t remember how to do it.

Good luck and Happy Diving!

Originally published May 14, 2024

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Scuba Diving The Catalinas Island, Costa Rica (Can you dive with Manta Rays?)

One of the reasons I wanted to visit the Pacific Coast of Costa Rica was for the opportunity to scuba dive with Manta Rays at the Catalina Islands. It was hard to find information online but I did find some youtube videos taken by scuba divers of encounters with these beautiful rays so I decided to go for it. My experience turned out to be a little different however.

The Dive Shop

Since I was staying in Tamarindo (which I don’t recommend because it is very overpriced and full of trashy tourists), I booked with a dive shop called Tamarindo Diving. They were very friendly and confirmed my booking right way. They also contacted me via WhatsApp to coordinate the pickup time. The dive shop sent a van to pick us up the morning of our dive. I was very pleased that they showed up right on time. We arrived at the shop to try on some rental gear. After completing my Advanced Open Water certification a few years ago, I decided to buy some basic gear for scuba diving so I always bring my own budget dive computer, fins, wetsuit from Amazon and my mask so that I don’t need to try on much at the Dive Shop. I usually just need to try on a BCD. Getting your own gear does not have to be expensive and I highly recommend you build your own collection over time. My dive computer, fins and wetsuit have lasted for years although the wetsuit is showing signs of wear. Once every one was ready and signed their waivers, we drove back a few blocks away to Tamarindo beach. If you have your own rental car, you can follow behind the Dive Shop’s car.

Note that they have now moved the location of their dive shop and it's located walking distance to the boat near the beach. We boarded a small canoe-sized boat to transfer us to their larger dive boat where the crew helped set up all of our equipment. After a quick briefing, we headed towards the Catalina Islands! The ride took about an hour.

The Catalina Islands

As we approached our first dive site, we suited up and split into two groups, one consisting of advanced divers who went off separately from the less experienced divers. We descended to around 18 meters at the first site. There were plenty of fish around but unfortunately due to the visibility being so poor, it was hard to observe them. Our group followed the Divemaster and soon we came across a trio of sleeping whitetip reef sharks. As we passed over them, they suddenly moved around, presumably because they don't like the presence of a large animals above them as it makes them vulnerable. We took a quick break on the boat in between dives (surface interval). Our friendly crew handed out some snacks and juice. Throughout both dives, we continued to encounter several whitetip sharks. There wasn't much to see in terms of corals or large pelagic life so the sharks were the highlight of the dives.

Whitetip Reef Sharks at the Catalina Islands

Swimming over them seemed to make them uncomfortable

So, can you see Manta Rays in the Catalina Islands?

I never quite got a clear answer as to when Manta season is since some people mentioned it was during the dry season whereas others mentioned that the dry season wasn't the time to see them. Either way, even if there were Manta Rays around us, we wouldn't have seen them due to the poor visibility. Mantas are wild animals after all so as it often goes in scuba diving, it is largely up to luck. February is the time for the mobula migration though but we must've been unlucky since we never spotted any. In short, it may be possible to spot Manta Rays but I wouldn’t suggest coming here just to see them. Rather it’s a good place to dive if you already happen to be vacationing here! I did have the chance to go freediving on this trip and while the visibility was very poor, I could hear the songs of the humpback whales underwater!

After the second dive, we headed back towards Tamarindo. During the ride back, we were surrounded by dive bombing birds hunting fish on the sides of the boat. It was a beautiful spectacle to see. The cliffs on the coast made for a nice view as we approached the shore. Overall I wouldn't recommend going out of your way just to come dive here but if you're already planning to visit the area then do allow yourself an extra day to dive with some reef sharks!

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Where To Dive With Manta Rays From Bali

How to book

While the island of Bali itself doesn’t have Manta Rays (that we know of), you can easily take a day trip by boat to go snorkel or scuba dive with these gentle giants. I booked my tour to Manta Point just off the island of Nusa Penida (east of Bali) with a company called Bali Diving. You can contact them ahead of time to plan your trip.

We were picked up from our villa at 7 am and driven to their dive shop at Sanur Beach. Once we arrived, we had to handle the payment first (they allow you to pay with a credit card) before moving to the back of the dive shop to try on our equipment. Their rental equipment seemed new and they had lot of choices. Since I had not yet done my Open Water certification, I chose the snorkeling tour which allowed me to freedive with them but share the boat trip with other scuba divers. Once we were ready, we headed to the beach and hung out for a while as they loaded the boat with all the tanks and equipment.

Sanur Beach is unfortunately very polluted. Plastic garbage lines the beach at low tide

Getting to Manta Point

The crossing to Nusa Penida in a speedboat was very rough! The front of the boat rose up until we could only see the sky out front then slammed onto the waves in a big thud that shook the whole boat. This went on for pretty much the entire next hour. It's the closest I've ever felt to death. If possible, try not to eat anything prior and take some anti nausea tablets (they sell them at the local pharmacies in Bali). I threw up when we reach the dive sit. Not fun, but the fish seemed to enjoy the free food. Alternately, you can take the ferry over to Nusa Penida and go from the shore there. That would be a calmer experience but you will need to stay over.

The boat spent more time on it’s side than flat

We eventually reached a calm bay next to some cliffs where other boats were already present. The water looked gorgeous but there were no rays in sight!

Manta Point

The Manta Rays Appear

Once we geared up and jumped in, we realized that everyone was underwater. There were a lot of divers under us! The dive depth is about 30m here but as snorkelers, you can observe from the surface. Some of the cleaning station are located at much shallower depths so even if you're a beginner freediver, you can meet them face to face by just diving down a few metres.

The giant oceanic manta ray with wingspans of up to 7 meters

The Manta cleaning station at Manta Point, Nusa Penida

The rays were massive! Truly gentle giants that seems to serene fly over the cleaning stations. They rays come to this area because of small fish called wrasse that eat the parasites bodies and dead skin cells off their bodies. The rays get a cleaning and the fish get a meal, it's a win-win symbiotic relationship. These areas are called cleaning stations and they make for spectacular dive sites around the world. Some of them swarm in harmony together. One of them was injured and had lost his cephalic fins. While buying a GoPro was too expensive at the time, I bought a budget action camera called Akaso from Amazon that still managed to take some pretty great photos and videos (like the ones above). Although I have upgraded to the DJI Osmo Action. The water was clean while I visited and it was a good break from the pollution in Bali. However, several videos and photos have emerged online about Manta Point being a bit overrun with divers and lots of plastic in the water.

Crystal Bay

After the first dive, we got back on the boat. If you are scuba diving, you will need to monitor your surface interval time. If you don’t yet have.a dive computer, the Cressi Leonardo is a great budget dive computer that should handle most of your recreational scuba diving needs. I bought mine after completing my Advanced Over Water Course and it has increased my dive confidence as well as saving me from having to spend extra money renting one at a dive shop. For snorkelers, the surface interval is a nice break then you're off into Crystal Bay where you'll be mesmerized by gorgeous coral gardens in beautiful crystal clear water. Scuba divers descended in another, much deeper area where they got to see Mola Molas (Sunfish)! I wish we had time to spend at the beach near Crystal Bay because it was absolutely gorgeous but hopefully on my next trip!

The bay was full of colourful corals and beautiful fish! If you swim out into the deep, you can see some massive fish. Our divemaster took us out where you couldn’t see the bottom anymore, seemed like a good spot for spearfishing. We had lunch provided on boat. The shop packed us a lunch of rice with skewers and a few Balinese dishes. I was so pleasantly surprised. It was the best day of my time in Bali. Nusa Penida was what I imagined Bali would be like. Uncrowded, clean, not drowning in the sounds of scooters and choking on smoke.

The ride back by boat was just as bumpy and the morning ride but after the day we had, it made it more bareable. I can’t wait to go back to Nusa Penida, as well as to head further out east to the Komodo Islands and take a liveaboard to Cenderawasih Bay and Raja Ampat!

As we arrived to shore, we saw lots of fishermen in the water. I also spotted.a Portuguese man-o-war in the water which was so scary yet beautiful. We arrived back to Bali at low tide and headed back to the dive shop. As we were walking, the couple in front of me started picking up bits of plastic garbage off the sand.

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5 Reasons Why The DJI Osmo Action Camera Is Great For Scuba Diving! (A long term review)

This post is for non professional photographers or for people who love to scuba dive as a hobby and do not want to lug around big and heavy camera equipment with lights onto dive boats. It's for regular scuba divers who just want to capture their dives in an efficient way while travelling light.
When I was searching for a decent compact camera to bring on my dives, there wasn't a lot of information specific for scuba divers. At the time, I was hesitant to buy a DJI camera because I had only heard about GoPros which were much more expensive. However, DJI is popular for making the best drones on the market and my DJI drone works well and has great image quality so I decided to buy the DJI Osmo Action camera and I have loved using it ever since. While there are now newer versions with improvements, the original is still an excellent option with a lower price.

The following is a review based on my personal experience and I am not a professional product reviewer. I paid full price for my DJI camera. Some of the links below are Amazon affiliate links. This means that, at zero cost to you, I may receive a small commission from sales of certain items. Thank you for supporting the blog.

So below are my 5 reasons why I think DJI Osmo Action is great for scuba divers! (and snorkellers too)

1. No red light filter required

If you've been on a dive boat, you've probably noticed other divers with a GoPro and a red square on their camera. This is because water absorbs red light as you descend and that is the reason why your underwater footage often looks very green! To offset this, many people add a red light filter in front of the lens to add back the lost colour.
With the DJI Action Camera, there is no need for all that because it has a built in underwater mode. Simply go into your settings on turn on the underwater mode. The icon looks like a little fish and voila! It will properly white balance your underwater footage by correcting for the lack of red underwater (it essentially adds a red/purple tint to your videos, which when used underwater, makes the colours appear normal). The main reason I don't recommend using a red light filter is because it adds an additional layer of glass that reduces the amount of light available. An action camera’s sensor is already small so the last thing you want is to reduce the light when filming in less than ideal situations like underwater and with potentially poor visibility.

2. Long lasting battery

The DJI Osmo Action has a long lasting battery which according to DJI, lasts for for up to 63 minutes when shotting at 4K/60fps. If you are doing 2 dives, which is very common at many popular dive tours around the world, that means a single battery is enough for both dives unless you are planning to film your entire dive from start to finish. I usually have over 50% battery remaining after 2 dives. But I think the most important reason for having a single battery that can last 2 dives is my next point, which is that it leads to

3. Reduced lens fog!

You might be wondering how long battery life leads to less lens fog? If you've been scuba diving in tropical countries, you know that these places tend to have very high humidity. Unfortunately for your camera, this extra humidity in the air can often fog up your lens during a dive as the warm air inside your camera housing condenses when operated in the colder water. The fix I found is to always seal/close your camera housing while you are inside your hotel room with the AC on high so no humidity makes it inside your camera case. (also works inside the car). This has always worked for me and I never need to use any fog strips. However, they key here is not to open your dive casing until you are done using your camera, this means no changing batteries while you are on the boat because as soon as you open the case, the warm humid air makes its way inside, ready to ruin the videos on your next time. So that’s why in my opinion, having a single long lasting battery is key!

4. Quick Record

One of the great features of this camera is that you can start recording even if camera is off. The camera has an auto off function that turns off the screen then puts the camera in standby to save battery. If you press the record button while the camera is off, it will turn on and start recording right away. Thus, you can leave it off during your dive to save battery and immediately start recording when you come across something interesting.

5. It does not freeze!

One of the cons of owning a GoPro is that they can sometimes freeze. I’ve read this online and also asked Divemasters about it. As a scuba diver, this is a big no no for me because once the dive starts, I cannot open the camera to take out the battery and wait for it to restart. With my DJI Osmo Action, I thankfully haven’t had this issue during the years I’ve owned it.

Cons

The one downside I have noticed is that the angle is not as wide as a GoPro. This applies to the original DJI Osmo Action but has been fixed in the newer DJI Osmo Action 3 and DJI Osmo Action 4. The wide angle is important if you shoot yourself in close range in selfie mode (like vlogging) but otherwise it’s not a big issue.

For a more budget friendly option, you can check out the Akaso EK7000 although the image quality, battery life and video stabilization are not as good but it is what I used before I could afford a better camera.

Good to Know

I often shoot in 4K resolution which is high enough that you can take screen captures for still photos from your videos. The camera itself is waterproof to 10m according to DJI although I would never use it without an underwater case (I use this one).

So there you have it, 5 reasons why I think this camera is great for Scuba Divers! If I missed anything or if you are thinking of buying one and have any questions, let me know below!

Sample Images I shot with the DJI Osmo Action

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