Suunto Zoop Novo Upgrades March 29, 2016 by lukesheppard

Back in 2010 Suunto released the Zoop dive computer to replace the ever popular Gekko and ever since then the Zoop has become one of the most popular entry-level dive computers on the market.

Now in 2016 Suunto have upgraded the original Zoop and released the Zoop Novo, but what are the main differences?  

HARDWARE

While the Zoop Novo looks very similar it’s face is 5.5mm larger and a bit slimmer and weighs 120g.

The Novo has a 4 button user interface which greatly improves how you navigate through the menus and change settings.

The screen now has two lighting options; holding the menu button will activate the backlight and the screen itself is also phosphorescent so shining a torch on it will make it glow in the dark.

The display now features a partial dot-matrix section like the higher spec HelO2 and D-Series computers.  With this section more complex information can be displayed without the need for confusing abbreviations.

The download cable port on the Novo now uses the better bayonet fitting from the D-Series.

SOFTWARE

The Novo comes installed with Suunto’s newest software from their D-Series with an easy 4 section menu structure.

The original Zoop had a 50h logbook memory but the Novo has a whopping 140h memory to record your diving profiles.

You now have the choice of sampling rates from 10, 20, 30, 60s (1, 2, 5 s freediving)  

CONCLUSION

Your main upgrades are the display is much better and the menu structure is much easier to navigate. Larger memory to store your dives, freedive mode, a deeper max depth and a choice of sampling rates add more flexibility to different types of diving so the ZOOP is now more versatile than ever, a great dive computer at an affordable price.