1. Important Product Alert
2. Leak Alarm (Water Detected) keeps activating
3. Housing frequently fails the 3.5-minute Leak Analysis
4. No leak alarm sound when releasing vacuum pressure after diving
5. The 3.5-minute Leak Analysis not working at high altitude
6. How to fit larger phones, like iPhone 14 Pro Max, into the SportDiver housing
7. Cannot open the housing
8. Attaching wrist strap to the underwater housing
9. Fogging inside the housing lens
10. Glare showing up in photo
11. Siri launches when putting iPhone into the housing
12. Cannot release vacuum pressure with my finger or a pen
13. Rear buttons are not working
14. Using lithium single-use or NiMH rechargeable AAA batteries
15. SportDiver iOS app only records video but not photos (iPhone only)
16. SportDiver iOS app update V3.0 (iPhone only)
17. iPhone display is always on with iOS 16 (iPhone only)
18. MagSafe external battery charger for iPhone (iPhone only)
19. Some photos/videos are not in focus
20. Video Plays back in slow motion
21. Huawei Android smartphone unable to access SportDiver app on Google Play Store
22. Screen not always dimming with iPhone is in Power Save (iPhone only)
23. App crashes when deleting last remaining photo (iPhone only)
24. Zoom function not working in Photo mode with iPhone SE or Xr, but works in video mode
25. iPhone “Back Tap” feature activates while underwater
26. Cannot play .MOV videos on Windows computer
27. Delay when selecting Video mode or changing the Lens Settings
28. Vacuum pressure check (Leak analysis) not working at high altitude
29. How to display on-screen exposure and settings
30. Photos and Videos Not Saved to the phone’s Photos or Gallery app
31. Notifications still appear when Do Not Disturb is turned on
32. Cannot download RAW files from an iPhone to a computer
33. Using the Triple Lens Setting with SportDiver iOS app (iPhone only)
34. Manual White Balance setting with some Android phones shows green live view and black image capture (Android only)
35. Cannot access all available lenses (Android only)
36. Ultrawide lens vignettes inside the SportDiver housing (Android only)
37. SportDiver Android app update V2.2 (Android only)
Still having issues or problems? Contact us for support and make sure to include the following information:
Please contact us at sealife-cameras.com/contact
(See below for App troubleshooting)
The gold-plated wet sensor is located on the inside bottom right of the SportDiver housing. The leak alarm will activate if anything conductive touches the wet sensor – your finger, water drop(s), dirt/debris, etc. If the alarm activates every time you power on the housing, some water drops may have entered the internal electronics behind the wet sensor, or the sensor has become damaged. Try these troubleshooting tips:
Power off the housing. Use a cotton cloth to clean and dry the wet sensor. If leak alarm still activates when powering on the housing, use a thin strip of tissue paper to absorb water droplets trapped behind the wet sensor, particularly on the back right of the wet sensor near the lead cable.
If the leak alarm still activates every time you power on the housing, some water drops may have deposited on the internal electronics. See above Important Product Alert. In this case, insert a new Moisture Muncher desiccant capsule inside the housing and keep the rear housing door sealed for one or two days. For faster drying, use a hair dryer on low heat / low fan speed. Direct the warm air towards the wet sensor for about 5 minutes. Be careful not to overheat the housing.
A common cause for this issue is water drops entering the housing when opening the housing after your dive. The water drops may not be easy to see and may travel down behind the gold-plated wet sensor.
If the above information does not fix the issue, please contact the SeaLife Service Center in your country. For a list of dealers/distributors that can offer repair service, please visit the SeaLife website at www.sealife-cameras.com/dealer-locator/
The purpose of the Leak Analysis is to check if the housing maintains an airtight seal before diving. After sealing the housing and applying the vacuum pump pressure, the housing monitors the internal air pressure for any changes. If the housing loses internal vacuum pressure, the phone will display “Leak Detected” or “Keep Pumping”, depending on the amount of pressure change. If the housing maintains vacuum pressure, the leak analysis will be successfully completed, and the housing is ready for diving.
Here are the most common causes for a loss of vacuum pressure resulting in leak analysis failure:
If the above information does not fix the issue, please contact the SeaLife Service Center in your country for assistance. For a list of dealers/distributors that can offer repair service, please visit the SeaLife website at www.sealife-cameras.com/dealer-locator/
This is normal. SportDiver housings produced after January 2022 will not make an alarm sound when vacuum pressure is released after diving.
After preparing the housing and applying vacuum pressure, the app keeps displaying Please Prepare Housing message and status LED continuously flashes red, yellow and green. This issue is most likely caused by exceeding the SportDiver’s high altitude pressure limit. The SportDiver housing vacuum pressure check (leak analysis) works up to altitude of 6500 ft / 1980m (11.6 psia). At higher altitude, the SportDiver Leak Analysis will malfunction, and LED status indicator will show red/green/yellow error code.
Replace the pre-installed medium-sized rubber grip tabs with the small-sized grip tabs. For some of the largest phone models, you may need to remove the grip tabs on the left side and use small grip tabs along the bottom. The online compatibility chart shows “0/S” in the grip tab size column, which means no grip tabs on left and small grip tabs on the bottom. The other grip tab sizes are in the white envelope included with the SportDiver. Please refer to the instruction manual for more details.
The internal vacuum pressure must be released before the housing can be opened. Unscrew the vacuum check valve cap. Use your fingertip to move the rubber yellow 1-way valve sideways to release the pressure. Do not push down the valve as that will not release the pressure. You may also use some unsharp object, like a pen cap, to move the valve sideways. Never use sharp object near the rubber 1-way valve.
The housing wrist strap included with the SportDiver UW camera attaches to the housing as shown below. Attached the looped end of nylon cord through the housing strap connector (A). The clip (B) is used for attaching the camera to your BCD (buoyancy Control Device) D-ring. Adjust the sliding lock (C) to tighten around your wrist.
Humid air or water drops trapped inside the underwater housing may condense on the cooler glass lens port and cause fogging. Here is the best way to prevent fogging:
Glare in the upper left corner may occur when a bright light or sunlight is behind you and there is an air gap above the phone. Light is passing through the air gap and reflecting of the inside of the glass lens port. To eliminate the gap [and glare], select the appropriate rubber grip tabs along the bottom and side. For example, the iPhone 11 Pro fits well inside the SportDiver housing using medium size grip tabs, but that creates a gap above the phone. Using large grip tabs along the bottom and small grip tabs along the left side eliminates the gap. See iPhone 11 Pro before and after pictures below.
The volume button is being pressed accidentally. Move the rubber grip tabs around so they do not touch the iPhone buttons. Refer to page 14 of the manual.
Move the rubber tip sideways to release internal vacuum pressure. Pushing the yellow 1-way valve down will not release pressure.
Here are some commons causes and solutions for the rear housing buttons not working:
If the above information does not fix the issue, please contact the SeaLife Service Center in your country for assistance. For a list of dealers/distributors that can offer repair service, please visit the SeaLife website at www.sealife-cameras.com/dealer-locator/
We recommend using two standard alkaline AAA batteries, which will last about 50 hours of continuous use. Single-use lithium and NiMH rechargeable AAA batteries may also be used in the SportDiver with no known side-effect. When using non-alkaline batteries, the housing battery strength indicator on the top right of the SportDiver app display may not be accurate because NiMH and lithium AAA batteries operate at slightly different voltages than alkaline batteries.
(See above for underwater housing troubleshooting)
Check your iPhone’s operating system and update it to iOS 16.5. Apple’s recent release of iOS 16.5 included significant changes, causing older phones running iOS 15 [or earlier] not to be supported by many apps, including the SportDiver camera app. iPhones 8 and up should be able to update to iOS 16.5. These kinds of technical updates occur every 1-2 years, making it necessary to update the SportDiver app so it remains compatible with Apple’s current operating system.
On May 22, SeaLife released SportDiver app update for iPhones, version 3.0. The app update includes the following:
Notes:
iOS 16 included a new feature that keeps the display on when the phone is locked. To disable this feature and preserve the phone’s battery power, go to Settings >>> Display & Brightness and scroll down to “Always On”, which is located at the bottom.
The MagSafe external battery charger for iPhones will not fit inside the SportDiver housing. It will interfere with the SportDiver’s waterproof door. Please make sure to remove the MagSafe charger before installing the iPhone in the SportDiver.
Remove the MagSafe battery charger before
installing the phone in the SportDiver housing
The smartphone camera’s auto focus system requires sufficient lighting and contrast to focus on the target subject, as well as good visibility for the camera to “see” the subject. If the subject is in low light or blending in with foreground/background (i.e. low contrast), the camera will struggle to focus. If you are experiencing focusing issues, please try these troubleshooting tips:
When video resolution is set to 120 fps (frames per second) or 240 fps, the playback will be in slow motion. This is useful when recording fast moving subjects and adding a dramatic effect to your videos. Recording videos at 30 fps or 60 fps will play back at normal speed.
Some Huawei smartphones have a special factory Android version installed that blocks out Google Play Store. You may install the SportDiver Android app directly to your Huawei phone by following these instructions:
Note: Dropbox prohibits opening APK, so that is why you need to save the file to your phone’s Files app and then open it from the Files app.
We have recently discovered that some iPhone models may automatically undim the display even though the phone is in Power Save mode. The phone will normally go into Power Save mode if no buttons are pushed within 1 minute. The display will dim and camera turns off [showing a frozen image] to conserve battery power. Pushing any button brightens the display and “wakes-up” the camera. Some iPhone models may automatically undim the display when moving the phone without touching any buttons. The camera does remain off until a button is pushed. Changing the phones Display settings or SportDiver app Power Save settings does not fix the issue. App programmers are investigating the cause and solution for this issue and will release app update ASAP.
The SportDiver app will save the first photo or video in Playback mode. You may delete the other files by pushing the OK button and selecting YES, however, the first photo/video will always be saved. This is necessary to prevent the app from becoming unstable and potentially crashing.
This is not an app bug – There is an iOS systems limitation within the iPhone SE and Xr that blocks out the zoom function.
Back tap is an iPhone feature that performs select tasks when tapping on the back of the phone 2 or 3 times. Back Tap should be turned Off when the phone is inside the housing because it may accidently perform the task and close the SportDiver app if the housing gets bumped or knocked.
We recommend using the VLC Media Player, which is a free download at https://www.videolan.org/vlc/index.html
There is a slight delay when selecting video mode or when changing lenses. This delay is necessary for stable app performance.
The SportDiver housing vacuum pressure check (leak analysis) works up to altitude of 6500 ft / 1980m (11.6 psia). At higher altitude, the SportDiver LED status indicator will show red/green/yellow error code.
When diving at altitudes higher than 6500 ft, you will need to disable the leak alarm in the SportDiver app Settings Menu. Make sure you carefully set up the housing to avoid a leak – inspect, clean and lube O-rings, and properly seal the waterproof door. You also need to add two pumps of vacuum pressure after sealing the housing even though the leak alarm is disabled. The vacuum pressure helps the waterproof door to fully seat itself into the housing, creating a strong seal.
The SeaLife SportDiver app update V2.0 includes on-screen exposure & settings data feature, which can be enabled or disabled. To enable the on-screen exposure data feature, go to iPhone settings >>> scroll down and enter the SportDiver app settings. You will find the on/off toggle at the bottom. See below screenshot.
Check that SeaLife SportDiver app permissions are set correctly. The following screenshot shows the correct app permissions. Access to Photos must be set to “All Photos”. App permissions are located under phone Settings -> SportDiver [app].
Phone notifications may still appear if exceptions are allowed. For iPhone, notifications will still appear if Do Not Disturb “Silence” setting is set to “While iPhone is locked”. Select “Always” to prevent notifications from appearing when Do Not Disturb is On. Do Not Disturb setting is located under phone Settings -> Do Not Disturb. For Android, remove any Do Not Disturb Exceptions.
Here is some information from Apple on how to import photos. https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201302. For PC, use Windows Photo App. For MAC, use Photos app import tool.
The SportDiver iOS app includes a Triple lens setting, which applies to all iPhone Pro and Pro Max models with 3 lenses. The Triple lens setting allows you to quickly change lenses when zooming up/down. 0.5x is Ultrawide, 1.0x is Wide (normal) and 2.0, 2.5 or 3.2 is Telephoto lens. The other zoom steps in between lenses are using digital zoom.
Notes
The manual white balance setting is not supported by some Huawei and Redmi phone models. The live view will appear green and result image capture will be black. See below screenshots. This is a limitation with those phone models and app update will not fix this issue.
For Android phones with two or more lenses, the SportDiver app may not show all available lenses in the Lens settings menu. This is not a bug. Some Android phone makers block out access to ultrawide and telephoto lenses. The SportDiver app will display all lenses made available by the phone maker. In most cases, it is possible to access the Telephoto lens by using the normal Wide lens and zooming to 2.5x or 3x – the lens will automatically switch to Telephoto.
Some Android phone makers position the ultrawide lens in the upper left corner of the phone, causing the SportDiver lens port to appear in the photo or video (i.e., Vignette). This issue only applies to some Android phones but not iPhones. iPhone has the ultrawide lens is positioned away from the corner, so there is no vignette.
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SeaLife released SportDiver app update for Android phones on June 5, 2023, which fixes a RAW mode storage bug affecting some Android phone models.