Shark Shield Freedom 8

The Shark Shield Freedom 8 is a wearable personal shark deterrent from Sentinel Ocean Systems, built for spearfishers, freedivers, scuba divers, snorkelers, swimmers and ocean professionals. It switches on automatically when the electrodes touch the water and surrounds you with a low-frequency, three-dimensional electrical field, roughly 6 meters (about 20 ft) across.

How it works
Sharks sense electrical fields through small organs in their snouts called the ampullae of Lorenzini. The Freedom 8's field overwhelms those receptors, which causes an approaching shark to turn away. The effect is behavioral, so it doesn't harm the shark. It's designed to reduce the chance of a shark encounter, not to guarantee you won't have one.

Proven background
The Freedom 8 builds on more than 20 years of Shark Shield development. The technology was developed with the KwaZulu-Natal Sharks Board in South Africa and has been evaluated in independent scientific studies. This version adds an improved housing and better sealing for durability.

Specifications

• Deterrent field: about 6 m (20 ft) diameter, 3D; field strength greater than 1 V/m at 1 m from the electrode center
• Maximum operating depth: 50 m (164 ft), pressure tested
• Run time: 4 to 5 hours (shorter in colder water)
• Charge time: about 3 to 3.5 hours
• Battery: Li-ion, rated for about 1,000 charges
• Weight: 1,025 g (2.26 lb) dry; 69 g (2.4 oz) in water
• Operating temperature: 12 to 40 °C (53.6 to 104 °F)
• Storage temperature: 0 to 60 °C (32 to 140 °F)
• Warranty: 2 years from the manufacturer

In the box
Freedom 8 unit, AC charger, instructions

Santa Barbara note: our local water often runs in the 50s in winter and spring, near the bottom of the Freedom 8's rated range. Expect run time toward the low end of 4 to 5 hours on cold days, and start every dive with a full charge.