Optima Discontinued

Does everything it claims to do. When the screen cracked I sent it in and they replaced it for free. No questions asked. Can't beat that.

This is a very reliable instrument. good engineering. Unfortunately, the plastic case and screen are not strong. I had to exhange my optima a couple of years ago. The one I have now has shown the same type of problem.(Craking!!!) The mounting is bad.

From the moment I got my Optima I was amazed! It calibrates quickly and reads very accurately. Also, the different altitudes it can be set at for both freefall & canopy mode are great. The sirens for the alarms are great & can be adjusted to your preference. I would recommend the Optima for any jumper needing an audible. My only "complaint" is that the access needs to be made easier, rather than waiting to press the button once the icon appears as it can be a little difficult. On a scale of 1 to 10 I'll give the Optima a 9! Great job L&B!

Good device, has all necessary features but plastic case is really bad, it's just cracked in two separate pieces so I have to use rubbers to put them back.
Also have some problems with batteries - last weekend device showed full charge with batteries that were exhausted.

It is an absolute fabulous device, it does what it should. Very accurate, and even the half deaf like myself can hear it when it goes off as programmed. The one downside of the Optima is that the plastic enclosure is absolutely crap. I had mine for about 9 months brand new and I really have so much respect for my equipment that i barely want to touch it if I'm not skydiving - but yet my Optima's enclosure is cracked and the insides wants to fall out. This is the same for a couple of fellow skydivers @ my local DZ and the only fix for this apparently is Super Glue!!! I will be testing a NEOXS soon. Main reason for that is that it's got a Aliminium casing at least and hopefully won't fall appart in a couple of months time.

I bet this puppy will hold it's value just as well as the original pro-dyter. The only thing I wish it did was simply log the jumps on it, just a jump number, none of the fancy stats would be good enough for me. Either way the canopy alerts, multiple banks, and custom height settings are worth every penny that makes up the price difference between it and the solo.

Once you figure out how to use the menus it's very easy to use. Like the skytronic gfx this device does not need to be turned off, but it's also nice that you can turn it off (the gfx you gotta take the bats out).

Recently received my Optima, and in 3 words...I LOVE IT!!!

The settings are VERY accurate - moreso than my digital wrist altimeter (as noted by my Parasport Italia GFX which read "68 ft" when after I'd landed on the ground...

The sound is crisp / clear, and the ability to set the pitch is excellent. Also, it's sturdy (I bought the "Protektor" plastic casing for it - even though I don't swoop near water...to protect it from perspiration in the helmet, etc (I have a RAWA freefly helmet, and the audible must be tucked inside a pocket right next to my ear).

I believe that this unit's LOW SETTINGS are the single best feature of the audible (after the PRECISE warnings). It has changed the way I fly and complete my landing pattern, and made me MUCH better in a VERY short time.

The ONLY negative to this unit is that it doesn't shut off automatically, forcing you to remove, turn off, replace it every time you use it.

If you are considering an audible - BUY THIS ONE! For the extra $30.00 or so...it's SOOOOO worth it.

The only thing this optima does not do is record your jumps, but that is of no benefit to you when you are in the sky anyway. Who cares if you jumped at 12800 or 13000ft?

In the plane I was with a girl and a guy who also had optima's (3 optima's). We put them next to each other and they read the exact same altitude (per 10ft!). As the plane climbed, all the altitudes changed simulataneously.

This is an accurate auidible which gives you many options of when you want your free fall and canopy warnings to go off. I recommend it to any skydiver, not just swoopers.

Excellent Audible, is easy to use and fits snug into my helmet. Customer service is excellent and sequence of beeps and clear to hear.

I am a proponent of use your eyes and let all the rest of your equipment be a backup. I just bought an Optima, and I am going to have to say that I am very impressed. This tool comes in a small, nice package with a big sound. Great job on the design and very well thought out functionality.

I bought the Optima so that I could use my Neptune as my visual altimiter and still keep the canopy warnings. I tried the guide feature of the canopy warnings and found it to be very annoying. If all I did was swoop it would probably be a very useful tool. Other wise it is just very annoying. Other then that I have been very happy with the Optima. The interface can be a little confusing at first, but it didn't take me very long to figure it out.

Optima is amazing toy! Sequence of beeps in "Guide" is really cool and it makes my swoops much better, safer and more accurate. I'm addicted. It's completly new quality of aproaching.

I used to use my Neptune as an audible and visible before, but there is no 'Guide' (three landing signals only) and I don't need Neptune anymore.

The new Optima from L&B is an amazingly veratile tool for all levels of skydiving activity. With three banks of freefall audible warnings and Low Speed Canopy warnings, this device can be used in any discipline.

I set one bank for tandems (5,500 ft, 4,500 ft and a hard deck) then one for regular freefall functions. I use the canopy alarms for tandem jumping, with the 1st set at 1,000 ft to remind me to stop talking to the student and concentrate on landing a 700 ft warning to ensure I'm setting up properly and a 300 ft warning which means "Please take your hands out of the toggles now". ALthough the canopy mode was primarily itended for swoopers, it works well for me as an instructor too.
The only "nitpick" is that the user interface can be a little confusing at first.... however when you're trying to jam that many functions in a device and control it all with a couple of buttons I'm not sure how else you'd do it!
Another great product from L & B!!!!!!!!