Turns out that I can get the test Lifescan One Touch Test Strips covered by my insurance with a much lower co-pay than I can Abbott FreeStyle Lite Test Strips. Is there a preferred/good meter you would recommend I get?
Shame, I loved the new style Lite test strips - the drop needed got a lot smaller recently.
Depends on your needs, Scott. The Ultra Mini is a good, portable meter if you just want a number out of it. The Ultra2 is good if you want to keep track of how food is affecting your blood sugar. You can mark your results as pre or post meal and it gives you those averages too. The UltraSmart is really useful if you are on insulin as it keeps track of all sorts of info. I'd suggest go to the LifeScan website and check out the features of all the meters. Only thing I don't like about them is they need a relatively large drop of blood and sometimes the test starts before you get enough blood on the strip and you get an error.
Im on insulin, and also a nerd for statistics. I also like them to be uploadable to my PC. Sounds like Ultra smart is what I want
The UltraSmart sounds "right" up your alley. I'm in the process of transitioning to an OmniPod and using the UltraSmart has made learning how to work the PDM for the Pod so much easier. Hopefully your insurance will pay for a meter since (other than the UltaMini which you can often get free) LifeScan's meters are not cheap. If your insurance won't pay for a meter and you have an FSA account, get an prescription for the meter and buy one before the end of the year (assuming you still have funds in the FSA account).
I love my Ultra Smart! It is awesome. I also prefer the reports that one touch prints over the Abbott ones. I would say to buy an Ultra Smart when it is on sale and then call Lifescan for a free mini meter as a back up. You may even be able to just call Life Scan and have them send you a mini now.
Do not forget to order the cable.
If Life Scan did a USB meter I would go with them and never look back.
If lifescan went to a semi-standard USB it be an improvement.. Theres only 1! meter that i know of that uses an ordinary mini-usb cable (The wavesense meters (Jazz/Presto and even the Keynote) uses a smart usb cable so its still proprietary)... which is the Solo V2.. although we could say the Bayer Contour USB is also technically USB .... (the USB is built INTO the device so I guess it can be said to have a standard USB cable)
Im a fan of the UltraSmart myself.. you can put carbs/insulin doses/and even other things entered into the meter, and its really simple to tag meals and such.. I only wish it had a smaller sample size. (and its not the smallest meter to carry with you) .. It used to be my preferred meter but with testing 8-10 times a day that sample size started getting to my fingers (even with multiple types of lancets/devices).. Ended up going to a different meter (Agamatrix Jazz).. but it isnt as fully loaded as the Ultrasmart is... One thing you might find is you want an ultrasmart *AND* another lifescan meter to (bring along with you).. At one point i was using both the Ultrasmart and the Ultra2...some people use the Onetouch Mini (with data port. there is a model of it without)... as a secondary meter as well but i found you lost too many features going that route.. (like the tagging and backlight of the Ultra2)
I agree with you 100% on the pros and cons of the UltraSmart, Jake.
I won't miss the large sample size when I change to the Freestyle meter incorporated into the OmniPod PDM and it seems like the PDM will give me all the same info that I'm getting from the UltraSmart.
If simplicity is what you want, go for UltraMini. Simple to use, and it has an optional PC connectivity suite. This will allow you to upload your glucose readings for a visual monitoring of your progress. (The diabetes management software is sold separately.)
One touch ultra SMART. It will do everything and you can use as much or as little as you wish but it will be there for you when you are ready to use the features.
Ask you endo for a freebie sample machine. Most areas of the country get them from the LifeScan Rep to give out - FREE.