I just bought one last week and used it today at Cane Bay, where the water was a little rough...not a drop came in. I have to admit I've gotten more adept at snorkeling since I moved here, though!

I was very impressed with it. A guy at a local STX dive shop didn't seem to think there was a whole lot of difference, but I noticed it seemed better and less likey to get sand in the little rubber doo-hicky in the bottom (which made my last Mares leak like mad).

We bought Oceanmaster Dry Snorkels for our trip last January and they worked great. We snorkeled for about 5 hours every day and never had a problem.

I just purchased a dry snorkel set by Body Glove. Now I'm new to this, and don't even pretend to know the difference between a regular snorkel and a dry snorkel, but I tried it out in the pool today and when I went underwater, no water got in (but I couldn't breathe either). then when I came up I blew out then it was fine. But when I submerged, I couldn't breathe in or out until I went up and blew out on it. I guess that's how its supposed to work - no water gets in your mouth and drowns you!

I was really pleased to see that my mask did not leak! Took me awhile to practice breathing thru my mouth without hyperventilating. I think I'll have this down pat by the end of the summer, but won't be able to "practice" before April of next year. Maybe its like riding a bicycle????

Also, got whole set (mask, snorkel, fins and bag) for $40 at Dick's Sporting Goods.

IMHO purge valves on masks and dry snorkels are both unnecessary and more complicated than they need to be. In others words, they will break easily and probably cost more. All you have to do is blow out to clear the snorkel.