Galileo Dive Computer Batteries

This is a quick tip specifically aimed at Uwatec Galileo Sol and Galileo Luna users. I own a Galileo Sol and recently started getting a low battery warning. This computer uses a CR12600SE battery, which is not commonly available. Naturally, I went to the internet to find a replacement battery as I have before. The listings online range from $30 to $50+ with few options from well-known sites.

In the course of my search, I found this post on ScubaBoard where the poster suggested that the single hard-to-find battery could be replaced with two LR1 batteries. These batteries are cheap and commonly available since they are used in medical devices. Amazon has them listed at $3 for a pair and you can also find them at local pharmacies. I happened to have two LR1 batteries and swapped them in. It has been 3 dives so far in water temperatures around 40F and everything is working great. I do expect that they won’t last quite as long as the CR12600SE as they have a lower capacity, but that’s no problem. The battery life on this computer is excellent, so replacements should still be infrequent.

After all this, I was chatting with my local dive shop who sells ScubaPro computers (ScubaPro bought Uwatec) and they did have some of the CR12600SE in stock for $35. This is a good option in case something goes wrong with these batteries, but I’ll stick with the LR1s for now. Scuba diving is an expensive hobby, so it’s nice to find cost savings here and there.

UPDATE 2024-10-28: 64 dives later, these batteries died. At the start of the dive, I had full battery and then mid-dive the battery empty alarm went off. For $3-4, 64 dives isn’t bad, but the sudden failure without warning was annoying. I’ll be trying to track down one of the original batteries for much longer life and much more predictable behavior.

UPDATE 2024-11-16: 5 more dives without actually swapping the batteries and they are working just fine. Very odd that they acted up on that one dive! I’ll keep running them as long as I’m diving familiar sites and see how long they go.