Contents(8)
- Want to Try On a Garmin Dive Computer? Head to the Ocean Counter
- Experiencing Garmin Dive Computers Underwater: "Super Unique — Nobody Does This"
- Experiencing Garmin Dive Computers Underwater: Reading the Display at a Glance
- Garmin Extreme Underwater Pop-Up Store — Engineers Moonlighting as Shop Staff
- Products on Display at the Garmin Extreme Underwater Pop-Up Store
- Garmin Dive Computer - Descent G1 Solar
- Garmin Dive Computer Series - Descent Mk2S
- Garmin Dive Computer Series - Descent Mk2i
There are countless dive computers on the market — so how do you find the one that's right for you? Simple: dive into the ocean and pick it there! In a move that could only be described as gloriously unhinged, Garmin opened a store in the sea. On July 12th, they created a one-day-only "Extreme Underwater Pop-Up Store" at the Northeast Coast Chaoching Park area, displaying dive computers at counters set up at 5 m, 10 m, and 15 m depths. BlueTrend's very own Editor couldn't resist making a pilgrimage to this underwater pop-up, and ran into plenty of fellow divers there. Read on for everyone's first-hand impressions!
After a detailed briefing from instructors, participants split into a scuba group and a freediving group to explore the Garmin Extreme Underwater Pop-Up Store.
Want to Try On a Garmin Dive Computer? Head to the Ocean Counter
This event was divided into scuba diving and freediving sessions, each led by a professional instructor to visit the Extreme Underwater Pop-Up Store. Mindy, a freediving participant who holds an AIDA 4 certification, made a complete circuit of all three depth-based display counters during the event.
What struck Mindy most was being able to experience the Descent dive computer's pace alert feature while actually wearing a Garmin dive computer underwater. "I thought the efficiency metronome feature was incredibly fun. Since the ideal freediving pace is one metre per second, you can feel the vibration — like a metronome, tick-tick-tick — and know whether your descent rate is on beat."
Mindy shared that this was their first time wearing a Garmin dive computer, and they loved feeling the watch's direct feedback against their wrist while diving underwater. "It's so different from trying it on at a department store counter. On land, you know a feature exists, but you have no idea what it'll feel like underwater — the feedback you get down there is immediate and real." Mindy also mentioned being amazed at how light the watch felt, with almost no sense of a foreign object on the wrist.
Mindy freedove all three depth levels — 5 m, 10 m, and 15 m — making a full tour of every display counter.
Experiencing Garmin Dive Computers Underwater: "Super Unique — Nobody Does This"
Mona, a tech blogger with a passion for outdoor activities, also freedove down to the Garmin Extreme Underwater Pop-Up Store to check things out! In order to spend as much time as possible admiring the watches underwater, Mona even broke her personal breath-hold record — which had her raving about how fun the event was. "No other product launch has ever required you to freedive down to take photos of it. It's super unique and perfectly on-theme."
As for how the underwater experience differed from a land-based review, Mona said: "It's completely different — you really cherish every second down there. Each dive only lasts about 1.5 minutes, so you push yourself to take in as much as you can." In total, Mona spent roughly 20–30 minutes underwater across multiple dives, mentally planning which details to focus on during the next dive each time she surfaced.
As a tech blogger, Mona's favourite part was diving down to pose for photos with the watches. She noted that at past product events she'd always been shooting alongside media crews, whereas this time you actually had to know how to dive to participate — which had her joking with some pride: "I'm the tech blogger who can go deep. In the 3C world, I'm the only one who can review a dive computer." Now that's confidence — even the Editor had to silently tip their hat!
Tech blogger Mona broke her personal breath-hold record in order to spend more time admiring the watches underwater.
Experiencing Garmin Dive Computers Underwater: Reading the Display at a Glance
After sitting through an impressively thorough dive briefing from an instructor, the scuba group headed out to try the watches at the 15 m underwater counter. Outdoor YouTuber Casey also filmed the whole experience for their channel. "I've never seen anyone put a product in the ocean and make you earn the right to see it."
"On land it's hard to grasp what the information on the watch actually means. But underwater, when it's showing your real depth and dive time right in front of you, it all just clicks." Casey shared their first experience using a dive computer — on shore the watch doesn't activate dive mode, so until they got underwater they couldn't make sense of any of the readouts, leaving them full of questions at the bottom of the sea. Trying it directly underwater this time made everything far more intuitive.
The moment Casey reached the Extreme Underwater Pop-Up Store, they were pressing buttons and testing every function, finding the experience both thrilling and practical. Casey also noted that taking photos at the underwater pop-up was its own challenge: the watches kept spinning in the current like they had their own built-in display turntable, which put divers' stability to the test.
YouTuber Casey admires the watches at 15 m depth, with a Garmin staff member on hand to assist using underwater cue cards.
Garmin Extreme Underwater Pop-Up Store — Engineers Moonlighting as Shop Staff
After taking part in such an incredibly cool event, the Editor couldn't help but wonder: how on earth did Garmin come up with such an audacious idea? As it turns out, the Extreme Underwater Pop-Up Store is the latest wild project to follow the "Garmin Extreme Hand-Off" campaign.
Previously, they'd dived into the waters off Orchid Island to hand-deliver a dive computer, hiked up a 100-peak to hand off a hiking watch, and cycled all the way to Wuling to hand over a cycling computer. After completing all those extreme hand-off challenges, Garmin's outdoor spirit pushed the team to think that even a normal product experience "could be way crazier!" — and so the Extreme Underwater Pop-Up Store was born, taking outdoor gear out into the great outdoors to be tested.
Fittingly, the "staff" at the Extreme Underwater Pop-Up Store were all full-time Garmin employees — engineers, marketing colleagues, and all. It turns out that when a group of hardcore outdoor enthusiasts gets together in one company, wild ideas are inevitable!
Many Garmin employees are avid outdoor enthusiasts who showed up in person for the Extreme Underwater Pop-Up Store, doubling as dive guides and shop staff for the scuba group.
Products on Display at the Garmin Extreme Underwater Pop-Up Store
Here are the three watches showcased at the Garmin Extreme Underwater Pop-Up Store, displayed at underwater counters set at 5 m, 10 m, and 15 m respectively. Tempted to try one on for yourself?
Garmin Dive Computer - Descent G1 Solar
Garmin Dive Computer Series - Descent Mk2S
Garmin Dive Computer Series - Descent Mk2i
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