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Dexcom G4 or a navigator 2?

J

jontyallan

Newbie
Messages
3
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Insulin
Hi

I am about to buy a CGM and have narrowed my choices down to a Dexcom G4 or a navigator 2. Has anyone got any experience of these that would aid my decision? Your help gratefully received...
 
Hi @jontyallan,

I see (from your profile) that you're not a 'pumper'; therefore - in view of the release of the Abbott Freestyle Libre (http://abbottnextfrontier.com/freestyle-libre), is there a specific purpose in mind... e.g. are you asking for a pump via your clinic and hope to tie the two together?

Regards,
Conrad
 
Hi Conrad

I don't have a pump, I need/want a CGM mostly for the endurance sports I do. I can have control issues during and after so want the early warning as well as being able to assess how my blood sugar is doing 4 hours in. I hadn't seen the CGM you linked to before... It is a bit of a minefield ... I am keen to find one that has the least impact when wearing it, not too bulky, but still reliable. At the moment a pump is not being considered
 
Had experience of Navigator... Put me off cgm's for life!! My hospital also withdrew them from giving to patients....
 
Dexcom is cheaper and more reliable.
 
Constant alarms when not hypo according to blood check on meter from pump.
Bad adhesive.
The monitor imploded.

Navigator total waste of time for me. Caused me more headaches and grief than anything else I have ever exoerienced as a T1 for 30 years.

Compared to the fantastic help that Accuchek have always given me for my pump, well, there was no comparison. I would never again have a cgm. Never.

Just had an awful time with Navigators accuracy and alarms.
 
I think no one goes for navigator anymore, because it has tons of problems.

I have dexcom and I'm terribly happy with it :)
 
Also, as said, if you're not interested in alerts (when your bg is too high or too low - these are life-saving for me), then you may want to look at Freestyle libre thing. You scan the sensor on your arm and it gives you info about your bg in last 8hrs.
 
PaulinaB said:
Also, as said, if you're not interested in alerts (when your bg is too high or too low - these are life-saving for me), then you may want to look at Freestyle libre thing. You scan the sensor on your arm and it gives you info about your bg in last 8hrs.
Click to expand...

Because its the same manufacturer as the Navigator I will wait and see the results from real users. Currently I would not touch Abbott products with a barge pole.

Of course I am interested in my higher or lower levels and patterns but, when you've had a bad experience with a manufacturer and product then it can have a huve impact on your thinking. I test up to 15 times a day and it doesn't bother me at all. Currently I would rather have a blood machine test than an Abbott product. Thats me. If people find the new product good then I will reconsider, but wait at least a year to see if they find the gadgets reliable.
 
PaulinaB said:
Also, as said, if you're not interested in alerts (when your bg is too high or too low - these are life-saving for me), then you may want to look at Freestyle libre thing. You scan the sensor on your arm and it gives you info about your bg in last 8hrs.
Click to expand...
All I did was turn the alerts off except the low one of course :)
 
donnellysdogs said:
Because its the same manufacturer as the Navigator I will wait and see the results from real users. Currently I would not touch Abbott products with a barge pole.
...
Currently I would rather have a blood machine test than an Abbott product. Thats me. If people find the new product good then I will reconsider, but wait at least a year to see if they find the gadgets reliable.
Click to expand...

Apple or Microsoft, Ford or Rolls Royce???

Precisely.

...Just because a company produces one duff product doesn't mean that everything they produce is as bad: people often like to run down Microsoft and 'worship' Apple, but look what happened when Apple brought out the iPhone 4!

Similarly, Ford is often heavily criticised yet even Rolls Royce have produced some real turds in their time.

If Abbott have produced something that revolutionises the market for glucose monitoring (in terms of cost, convenience and usability, etc.) then a) good on them, and b) it's about ruddy time someone did!
 
jontyallan said:
Hi Conrad

I don't have a pump, I need/want a CGM mostly for the endurance sports I do. I can have control issues during and after so want the early warning as well as being able to assess how my blood sugar is doing 4 hours in. I hadn't seen the CGM you linked to before... It is a bit of a minefield ...
Click to expand...

Indeed it is - with just about every aspect of diabetes management!

You may find this link a good start: http://www.inputdiabetes.org.uk/glucose-monitoring/cgm-costs/

Also, if you want to see some real-life examples and comparisons, go to Youtube and check out 'Diabetic Danica' and others that show up from there:
 
ConradJ said:
Apple or Microsoft, Ford or Rolls Royce???

Precisely.

...Just because a company produces one duff product doesn't mean that everything they produce is as bad: people often like to run down Microsoft and 'worship' Apple, but look what happened when Apple brought out the iPhone 4!

Similarly, Ford is often heavily criticised yet even Rolls Royce have produced some real turds in their time.

If Abbott have produced something that revolutionises the market for glucose monitoring (in terms of cost, convenience and usability, etc.) then a) good on them, and b) it's about ruddy time someone did!
Click to expand...

Good comparison!! I agree, but with me I'm going to wait to get real feed back from real people using over an amount of time before considering.

Think I'm of the age when I don't want to jump in feet first to new products (like apple 6.0!). Guess I like to research and look at reviews 12 months on and see what they do with prices longterm too.

It is about time that technology with pumps and cgms progressed to the next stage... As with cars, phones, tv's etc. There is a huge market out there for the manufacturers.

Funny how our attitudes have changed over the last decade too. Previous decades we would not have thought about self funding products, relying upon nhs etc.. Now there is an acceptance of self funding if necessary.
 
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