Documentation
Here you will find all of the important manuals for the Swift transmitter. If you can't find what you're looking for please reach out to our Customer Service team.
- Swift Manual - English
- Swift Manual - French
- Swift Manual - German
- Swift Manual - Italian
- Swift Manual - Japanese
- Swift Manual - Korean
- Swift Manual - Simplified Chinese
- Swift Manual - Spanish
- Swift Manual - Traditional Chinese
- Swift Manual - Portuguese
SWIFT Battery Replacement
FAQ
Still have questions? We have the answers.
The LED indicator is relatively dim by design so the transmitter could have the longest battery life possible. The LED is useful as a status indicator, it is not bright enough to be used as a buddy light.
Swift transmitters are built with O2 compatible materials; however, the Swift is not shipped “O2 clean”.
The Swift’s battery life is approximately 300 dive hours or 5 years when in storage. It is important to ensure that the regulator the Swift is mounted on is purged when not in use. The Swift will continue to transmit gas pressure if it is pressurized above 3.5 bar (50 psi).
The battery is user replaceable by removing the Swift’s cover. See the Swift operating instructions for battery change directions.
The Swift has many improvements over legacy Shearwater transmitters:
- The active interference avoidance system allows multiple transmitters to work side-by-side without signal interference. The maximum recommended number of legacy transmitters was two (one grey, one yellow).
- The indicator LED provides quick diagnostic information.
- The Swift is smaller than legacy Shearwater transmitters.
- The Swift has a robust metal base that allows for hand installation without the need for special tools or wrenches.
- The Swift’s double O-ring design reduces the chance of a flood after a battery change.
- The Swift is unlikely to be mistaken for a tank valve knob.
- The Swift was designed and built in British Columbia, Canada.
The Swift works with all pre-existing Shearwater AI computers, and likely to work with computers from other brands that use MH8A marked transmitters. However, operation with dive computers from other brands cannot be guaranteed.
It is backwards compatible with all pre-existing Shearwater AI computers, and likely to work with other brands that use the MH8A transmitter.
4-transmitter support has been added in a recent free firmware update to all Shearwater AI compatible computers. This new feature allows the gas pressure of up to 4 cylinders to be viewed simultaneously.
From a user interface perspective, displaying more than 4 transmitters is complicated and, in our testing, we felt that it negatively affected the user experience.
While the Swift can be used this way, it was not designed for tracking your buddies’ gas pressure. The range is 1m (3ft), so unless you are diving quite close together, you should expect to lose comms regularly.
Yes. The Swift will avoid interfering with legacy transmitters.
There is no need for different colours, as the Swift transmitter intervals aren’t fixed.
While we will always endeavour to help customers where we can, we aren't qualified to assist in the setup of non-Shearwater computers. We recommend contacting your local dive shop for help setting up non-Shearwater products.
In normal usage, the Swift transmitter's battery will last several years. Due to the infrequency of a battery change, we made the choice to go with a user removable cover as it allows for an overall a smaller design. The long period between the first low battery warning (yellow) and last transmission should allow you to complete many dives after the first low battery warning, reducing the urgency of a battery change. The battery should be changed as soon as practical after the first (yellow) battery warning and immediately following a critical (red) low battery warning.
RF AI transmitter technology has been proven reliable over many decades and we wanted to make sure that any improvement we made would be backwards compatible with all previous generation Shearwater dive computers.
Position the transmitter such that it is on the same side of your body as you wear your dive computer.
Only if using a HP hose, then the use of a 'spool' insert is required (not included). In this case, the spool holds the air pressure, and the transmitter base O-ring prevents water ingress to the hose fitting threads. Spool size 21x4.25 mm.
Range is approximately 3ft (1m). RF signals can be impacted by objects, so it’s best to put the transmitter on the same side of your body as the receiving dive computer.
More than 20 hours of transmit time in most cases.
The Swift ships with a high-quality Panasonic CR2 battery that will give well over 25 hours of transmission time from the first (yellow) low battery warning at about 20°C. The precise amount of transmit time will be affected by temperature and the type of battery installed. The Swift has been designed to allow you to comfortably finish your dive trip without the need to change the battery in the field; however, the battery should be changed as soon as practical following a low battery warning.
There is a range decrease when batteries get weak. The low battery indications give useful information when this starts to occur. The low battery warning will occur before a significant range reduction.
The Swift was designed with the use of multiple transmitters in mind. It “listens” for other transmitters in the vicinity, and dynamically changes its transmit interval to avoid interference.
Yes. Transmissions from legacy transmitters will be detected by Swift, and Swift will modify its transmission interval to avoid signal interference with these transmitters. Legacy transmitters cannot actively avoid interference with each other or with the Swift.
We did not design a specific upper limit to the number of Swift transmitters that can operate in close proximity. In our tests, we have had 20 transmitters operating normally when in close proximity. This should eliminate any concerns of transmitters interfering with each other from a practical perspective.
Transmission occurs within a 4.8 to 5.2 second time period. So, approximately every 5 seconds.
Shearwater computers will alert the user with a yellow “Lost Comms” warning after approximately 30 seconds without receiving a transmission. Last known gas pressure will continue to be displayed until 90 seconds has passed at which time a red “Lost Comms” warning will appear and gas pressure will no longer be displayed.
The LED indicator on the top of the Swift is not a buddy light. The light helps to indicate that the transmitter is working properly.
You can views the certifications for all Shearwater products here.
The Swift transmitter was designed and is built at our factory in British Columbia, Canada.