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The LibreLink Lie

I've had issues using LibreLink and the Libre Sensor

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UPDATE:

So all credit to Abbott. They did eventually get back in touch with me, have taken a bunch of details about the phone and the issue at hand and have said they will be updating the device compatibility list on their website. I still think it's a little too well hidden but large companies move slowly.

They have also dispatched me a replacement sensor to make up for the days I've lost faffing around and having to order a new phone to work with the device.
 
chloegeek said:
According to the Play Store so is the OnePlus One which I tried to use. Sadly the Play Store is unable to really tell you whether or not it's going to work in the end
Click to expand...
I know my OnePlus 3 with Android 6.0.1 (yes I've been ignoring the update messages for the past year or two) on it works fine, though when I started using them it could be a complete PITA to get it to scan (had to hold it directly on the sensor and sometimes move the t-shirt sleeve out of the way), but something has obviously changed/updated since then as its more flexible how close it has to be held - though still doesn't have half the range of the actual reader (I put it down to the NFC on my phone being a bit underpowered)
 

Hi, I have tried to download the Librelink and computer says no, it has Windows and Mac, but my laptop is a Chromebook, so waiting to hear back from customer services. I don't have it on my phone, should I try that, as I really want to see my data !! My phone is a Sony Xperia, about 4/5 months old. TIA
 
Librelink is an app for phone. On the computer you can download libreview. You can than plug the reader into the computer and it will transfer the data to Libreview.
If you use librelink on your phone to scan your sensor it will upload the data automatically to libreview.

Most of the data is the same graphs and stats you can see on your reader (or phone)
 
Antje77 said:
Librelink is an app for phone. On the computer you can download libreview. You can than plug the reader into the computer and it will transfer the data to Libreview.
Click to expand...

My computer won't let me download Libreview !
 
I've rather lost confidence altogether in the Libre (and long ago in their so-called Customer Service). I bought a new sensor to use in hospital (pneumonia!) so as to avoid all the finger-pricking. During the first week or so, it began to dawn on me that the readings could be ridiculously optimistic; and so it proved when a nurse rather wisely insisted on comparing Libre with prick. Curiously, accuracy improved to within 10% or so as the 14-day cut-off approached.

Roll on the competition, I say. Can't wait.
 
I spent ages trying to find a cheap phone that worked for this, and eventually got the Vodafone N8 which was less than £100 and LibreLink works really well on that.
 
Robinredbreast said:
My computer won't let me download Libreview !
Click to expand...

Confused here.
LibreView is a website.
https://www1.libreview.com
You register there and register the same account on your phone and your phone should send the data directly to the web site.
You then view it in the browser.

If you don't have LibreLink on your phone then you can, I think, connect your Reader to the computer and the web site will upload the data.
For this to happen it has to download special "drivers" to talk between the computer and the Reader.
I suspect that there may not be drivers for Chromebooks.
I think that possibly you can only upload data from a Reader using Windows.

I know I can upload data from my Freestyle Freedom Lite finger prick meter using LibreView and Windows.

This is one reason why I still use Windows, not Linux or other operating systems. There are too many specialised devices which only work with Windows.

TL;DR - use a phone to read and upload the data. You should then see it on the website.
 
Mine works fine with a Doro phone. However, I use the Libre reader most of the time, I see no reason to place all my reliance on 'smartphones' , prefer to use the dedicated hardware.
 

One reason is market share.
Figures are often unreliable but this site
https://www.idc.com/promo/smartphone-market-share/os
shows that Android has roughly 85% of the global market.

I think that if those numbers are in any way accurate that Abbott would be foolish to ignore 85% of potential customers.

I know that if the Libre sensor was iPhone only then I wouldn't be using it, and the posters who are looking for a £100 phone to use as a reader might not be using it either.

A clean and well managed target infrastructure does make development easier.
However the chosen platform also needs market share.
 
As a long term T1 (60+ years) I tried Abbot Blood test meter several years ago.

After getting repeated silly incorrect readings I tried contacting Abbott to get their thoughts as to why.
The first person I spoke to ready did not have a clue! About a week later I received a call from Abbott and it turned out to be the then Managing Director who spent about 2 hours on the phone asking me questions as an experienced Diabetic and I possibly provided some useful information. I was invited to visit for a tour of their facility which I had to refuse because I did not want to spend £300 + to get there and back.

Later reflection caused me to realise that the driving factor then was opportunity and profit potential.

It seems that the driving force is still the same and the software & support is still cr#p.

Hoping that result accuracy has improved as I am expecting to be given a Freestyle libre in a couple of months.

Just yell at them - they might eventually hear you !
 
 
Trouble is - is one really willing to risk the apparent unreliability? I accept entirely that the Libre will work for much of the time for most of the people (including myself). But, and particularly given the sensor cost, is that really good enough?

IMO, only some meaningful competition will sort the problems (and, hopefully, the price). Sorry to moan, but feeling rather aggrieved.
 
gmmorris said:
Trouble is - is one really willing to risk the apparent unreliability?
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I regularly do a fingerprick test against my Libre. And I'm very much willing to pay 120 euro's a month for the benefits it gives me, despite the unreliability it has for me.
For me it's not 'risking the unreliability', it's an extra tool, next to finger pricks, modern insulin and food packages with clear information to manage my diabetes, and it helps a lot, despite it not being perfect.
 
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LibreLink wasn't originally developed by Abbott - it was farmed out to a 3rd party up until last year when Abbott brought it in house. Back then, it worked with few Android devices at all without modifying the APK to remove Play Store device restrictions and then it was a game of pot luck with your NFC chip and OS version (worked well with the circa-2016 Nexus devices).

Abbott have actually been pretty good in my experience in supporting newer devices since they took over development. The only issue I've seen on my Pixel 2 XL was a failure to scan when in-app noises were enabled after the Pie 9.0 release last year but there was a workaround and it was fixed fully soon after. It works up to the August 2019 patch for Android 9.0 on this device.

I think they still use the Play Store device restriction capability to stop incompatible devices from getting the app but they perhaps need to change their documentation a bit. It would be fairly difficult to maintain an active list of every Android device they do/don't support since there are so many manufacturers, models (and variants). If they can work out a set of parameters which would make a device compatible or not and document this in an understandable format it would be easier to maintain. However, I can see even that being difficult as some devices were fitted with NFC hardware that was capable of killing a sensor at one time. It's possible for that sort of thing to happen again in future.
 
I had to stop using the Libre after 3 months due to a reaction with the adhesive.

(edited by mod)
 
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I must say I love the Libre and the freedom and knowledge it gives me with graphs, trends and so esay to use especially at work when I am standing in front of customer's. I still finger prick too and last night I uploaded the app on my phone, but like @agwagw, I do prefer to use the scanner. So all in all, I am still happy with it 6 weeks on
 
chloegeek said:
I'm exploring other avenues for picking up a reader because I do want one as a backup but it's going to take a while.
Click to expand...

That's a pain, but then nothing has been straight forward with Abbott. If sourced overseas are there compatibility issues?
 
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