I know that this has been covered in this forum, ad nauseum, however, I’m trying to make the Big Jump to the pump soon and I can’t decide which one I want. Basically, I’ve heard different things about various features and I’m looking for confirmation/denial from actual users. I have it narrowed down to Minimed or Animas.
Are there still big problems w/ the Animas software? I’ve read that Animas software is crappy, while the Minimed one is “old school looking” but works. I’ve definitely found some bizzare paterns by using the software w/ the OneTouch, so I am a fan of using the software as a tool.
Is the OneTouch Ultralink accurate (at least as much as the Ultra2 or Mini)? That is the feature that I like the most but if the thing isn’t accurate then there is no point.
I really like the screen on the Animas, but is that a side effect of Ipod use? Will the color really make a difference?
Any difference w/ infusion sets?
How is the customer service w/ each company? I’ve heard that Minimed is kinda shoddy in this department.
I realize that everyone has a different experience so of course there may be many answers to the questions. I know that I will love which ever one I choose, however, little annoyances are no fun.
I just started pumping in April. At first I was going to go with Animas. I was not diagnoes as Type 1 right off the bat, I was misdiagnosed and Animas didn’t work with me nearly as well as Medtronic did to get me approved for the pump through Medicare. I have had no problems at all with my pump. I have also have not had to use customer service with Medtronic yet either.
I can speak to Minimed’s service - I’ve found it to be exceptional. I can’t say enough about it -whether I’ve looked for info on their website, or emailed questions, or called (one of the times in total, meltdown, panic mode), they have always provided quick, efficient, informative and helpful service.
I can’t speak to the One Touch Ultralink, as I’m still using my old BD meter. But I’ve used One Touch meters, and other than that they seem to need a bigger drop of blood to get a reading than BD, they’ve been just fine.
Minimed has examples of their infusion sets (there’s 4 or 5 different types - I go back and forth between two types depending on location) on their website. I’m not sure if Animas does nor not.
I suspect I would be quite happy with either pump.
I’m upgrading to a CGMS Minimed through their Pathway plan, which has been quite affordable (should be here in the next 3 weeks or so!!!). I’m not sure if Animas is doing CGMS yet.
The one touch link meter is as accurate as all of my other OneTouch meters. I love that thing b/c it stores every meter read in my pump. I don’t think the Animas color screen will make much of a difference and the one bad thing I’ve heard about its user interface is the lack of short-cut buttons, especially to get to the backlight. W/ the MM, there’s a shortcut for most of the things you use often. I just recently did some dealings with the MM customer service and have a 1 out of 3 success rate. The first 2 nimrods never got things straightened out, but I finally got somebody who knew what they were talking about. I think MM has just gotten so big that they now have lots of call-center folks rather than MM-expert types. It’s pretty much luck-of-the-draw with customer service anyway. As for the infusion sets, I started w/ the QuickSet for MM and still use it. I never had any problems and don’t see it as a downside that the sets are proprietary for MM.
I don’t think you can go wrong either way. You’ll figure out exactly what you want from the pump a few months after you’ve been wearing one. If you are in the water a lot, I would suggest the Animas. If you might need 0.025 basal units or 0.05 bolus units, go with the Animas. If you want (and will get) the CGMS, go with MM. If you want to go through the smallest amount of button-pushing possible, go with the MM. Again, either way - you’ll probably love your pump.
yeah minimed’s infusion sets are propietary, but now theres a reservoir especially made that will be able to let the minimed pump user to actually use luer lock infusion sets. Im currently using the cleo infusion set with my minimed pump…
you can get the reservoir at fifty medical…
i really dont have problems with my pump and the minimed customer service… they have been exceptionally good right from the start…just to set an example, today i called them, for my CGM, i wasted 3 sensors last night for some reason that i keep getting bad sensor alarm, so they ended up giving me 3 sensor as a replacement free of charge and shipped via UPS next day…
