[Joew]

I think it depends on where you dive and whether or not you have your own tanks. Here in Hawai'i, as with most tropical travel destination, pretty much every tank is AL with yoke valve. A DIN reg doesn't do you much good here without an adapter. But if you wan't to dive with HP steel tanks, for example, then DIN regs are for you.

For recreational diving, a DIN reg is no more safe than a yoke valve. The leaking issue you brought up is due to the o-ring. With a yoke connection the o-ring is in the tank valve, whereas with a DIN it is on the reg. Most divers are less likely to check the o-ring on a tank than a reg. Tank valve o-rings are cheap and easy to replace, and you'll always catch any serious leaks before you get in the water.

If you plan on using tanks with both types of valves, then I would reccomend a DIN reg with yoke adapter.