SeaLogRatio
How to import dives from a Ratio iDive Color Pro
The Ratio iDive Color Pro transfers over serial cable only. iOS does not expose that kind of connection to apps, so the dives come across once through a Mac or PC, then live on your phone forever.
Transfer the dives off the Ratio iDive Color Pro
- Install the driver for the cable
The serial cable is a USB-to-serial adapter, and its chipset needs a driver before any software can see the Ratio iDive Color Pro. Install the FTDI (Windows driver package is the FTDI VCP/D2XX set, 2015 build) / Prolific PL2303 (the current macOS installer sends you to the Mac App Store PL2303 Serial driver) driver, then reboot. Skip this and the desktop app will report no device on a cable that is working perfectly.
Ratio USB serial drivers for Windows (FTDI VCP package)
These cables are USB-to-serial. Without the FTDI driver the port never appears, and the software reports no device. - Connect the Ratio iDive Color Pro to a Mac or PC
Use the serial cable made for the Ratio iDive Color Pro, not a generic charging cable: the data pins differ. Check the o-ring is seated, line the connector up with the notch on the case, and turn it to lock. An iPhone or iPad cannot open this kind of connection at all, so this step has to happen on a computer.
The o-ring must be in place, the nub lines up with the notch, then the head turns a quarter turn to lock. This cable is FTDI (Windows driver package is the FTDI VCP/D2XX set, 2015 build) / Prolific PL2303 (the current macOS installer sends you to the Mac App Store PL2303 Serial driver). - Put the computer into PC mode
Switch the Ratio iDive Color Pro into its PC or upload mode before you launch the software, not after. Most desktop apps only look for the unit at startup, so a computer that wakes up late is a computer the software never finds.
Most units only hold this mode for a minute or two, so do it last, right before you connect. - Download the dives with desktop software
Read the computer with Ratio DC Manager or Subsurface. Subsurface is free, open source, runs on macOS, Windows and Linux, and supports this model.
- Export the dives as UDDF
Export the whole logbook to a UDDF file. UDDF is the open dive-log exchange format and keeps the full depth profile, not just the summary numbers.
Export the whole logbook, not the visible page. UDDF keeps the sample-by-sample depth profile, which a summary CSV does not. - Import the file into SeaLog
Get the file to your phone. AirDrop, iCloud Drive or email all work, anything that lands it in the iOS Files app. Then in SeaLog tap the plus button, Import dives, UDDF file, and pick it. Every dive arrives with its profile, and duplicates are skipped.
A dive log app for the iDive Color Pro
Once the dives are in, SeaLog treats them like its own: a scrubbable depth profile, the site pinned on a map, water temperature, gas and tank, buddies, and the photos from your camera roll matched to the minutes you were underwater. Tag the animals you saw and they go into your species life list. It works offline on the boat and syncs when you are back, and your whole logbook exports to UDDF, CSV or PDF whenever you ask, so nothing is locked in here either.
Ratio’s own software and drivers
The hardware brand is alive and selling (the iX3M 2 line is current), but its desktop logbook software is effectively orphaned: Ratio's own FAQ declares DiveLogger discontinued, its replacement Ratio ToolBox cannot read the dive log at all, and Ratio's official instructions now hand the actual dive download off to the third-party Subsurface project.
- Desktop softwareRatio ToolBox download hubCurrent first-party utility for iDive COLOR, iDive Sport and iX3M; firmware, clock and upgrade codes only, no logbook.Win + Mac
- Desktop softwareRatio ToolBox for Windows (installer)Roughly 81 MB; bundles the FTDI device drivers alongside the app.Windows
- Desktop softwareRatio ToolBox for macOS (Terminal install script)The way Ratio tells Mac users to install: it opens the PL2303 driver in the App Store, then fetches and copies the app.macOS
- Desktop softwareRatio ToolBox for macOS (direct archive)The payload the install script downloads: a zip wrapping the Ratio Toolbox dmg.macOS
- Desktop softwareSubsurface (the app Ratio officially points to for downloading dives)Third-party but linked from Ratio's own ToolBox pages as the supported way to read the logbook.Win + Mac
- Official guideWhich software do I need? ToolBox plus Subsurface vs DiveLogger 4The routing page that states DiveLogger 4 covers iDive Sport and iX3M but not iDive COLOR.
- Official guideModel chooser: which iDive generation do I own?Splits Sport and COLOR from the Avantgarde line, then Avantgarde MY16 (pre-2017) from the newer Avantgarde.
- Official guideConnect to a Windows PC with Ratio ToolBox, and download dives via SubsurfaceThe most complete official walkthrough; ends with the Subsurface import steps because ToolBox cannot read the log.Windows
Every link goes to Ratio’s own site and was checked before publishing. If one has rotted since, tell us and we will fix it.
Ratio iDive Color Pro: common questions
Can I connect the Ratio iDive Color Pro to my iPhone directly?
No, and no app can change that. The Ratio iDive Color Pro transfers over serial cable only, a connection iOS does not expose to apps. Anyone promising a direct wireless download from this model is describing a different computer. The one-time cable route above gets every dive across.
Which cable and drivers do I need on a Mac?
Use the Ratio interface cable made for this model, not a generic charging cable: the data pins differ. Most of these cables are USB-to-serial and need the driver for their chipset on macOS, usually Silicon Labs CP210x or FTDI. Install the driver, reboot, and the port appears to the desktop software.
Do I have to do this every time I dive?
Only if you want the new dives in digitally. Many divers do the cable run once to rescue their history, then log new dives directly in SeaLog on the boat, which takes about as long as filling in a paper page.