Today I opened a box and discovered that my Dexcom and pump supply place had sent me the new Dexcom g5 touch screen receiver. I’m not happy. It’s larger, heavier and has a vertical orientation apparently which can’t be changed.
The old receiver is very small, very light weight and fits perfectly in the case provided which I clip on my softy pump band along with my pump. I can look down at it and see bg any time. And it’s small size makes it not such an eyesore even if it’s not concealed by my shirt.
What was Dexcom thinking making such a big heavy receiver with the wrong orientation? Where is the progress?
I’m just wondering if I can send it back and get a new older version and just keep using that. I’m not sure if I should try it and see how it goes. I have no case to clip it on my belt. My current reciever is still ok. I guess it was time for me to get a new one maybe since they tell you at one year to do this.
Are there any real advantages to this other than touch screen? Are we going to be forced to switch to this? I don’t understand why they just sent this to me without even consulting me about it.
Update: Jan 1 2018
I’m updating now with some of my impressions of the ts receiver: I inserted the sensor on Friday around 2 am. Using all my new allergic reaction prevention techniques which are helping so far I think. So I really don’t like this reciever even more now. I’m using it with the tallygear case in horizontal mode, this 1 of the only 2 cases available currently which can be attached to belt. It has a clear vinyl window. I’m having issues with the touch screen, it’s not that responsive and I wonder if it’s being affected by the vinyl. The software design is very bad. The screen times out after only 10 seconds and there’s no way to adjust that. On my pump I can set a longer time. When I was trying to calibrate the screen locked a few times which is beyond annoying and time consuming. It takes way too long because each time you have to press a 1 2 button to unlock the screen, and then press calibrate and then scroll and then enter and save etc. if you check an alert you have to unlock first and then press again to stop the alert and then if you want to calibrate you have to unlock all over again. Wtf? This is crazy. Someone at dexcom said the old receiver did this too but I don’t remember having to do all these things and the button was much better and easier to press. The button on the old dex is larger, it’s raised and it’s not covered at all in the dex provided case. The button on the new receiver is terrible. It’s too small, it’s inset into th reciever which makes it much harder to press and the only cases currently available cover it with vinyl. While I like the vinyl for protection I think it’s making the button issues and ts issues worse so I hope dexcom will make a proper case for this that can be put on a belt. I like to be able to quickly check my bg etc and this is terrible. I have to find the button, which isn’t easy at all, I have to look for it most of the time because I can’t feel it easily, and then press it 2 or 3 times for it to respond and to get to the unlock menu etc. I tend to use my thumb for this and it’s actually painful because my thumb is cracking with this cold spell. Another thing that is happening is that the screen shows up after 2 seconds and then times out right away.
I’m having issues with the sound alerts too. Either I’m missing the first vibration alerts or it’s just not making a sound sometimes. I missed a low this way the first night. On this reciever the vibration is very weak and the device is larger and not right up against me so I’m not feeling anything. I don’t seem to hear it either sometimes.
For now I’m going to have to adjust my case because the band on the case for the belt is too wide for my softy belt and it moves around. I plan to sew a snap on or Velcro so the band Can open to remove it and I’ll make it thinner too so it doesn’t slide around. I had purchased fabric in the summer to make my own cases and belts but I’ve only mad one softy belt so far so hopefully I’ll have time to do more. I hope this whole reciever is redesigned soon and that they’ll make a proper case for it.
IMO, Dex is moving away from the receiver as a significant portion of its business.
At this point, Medicare recipients are probably the biggest reason for the receiver.
I do not believe the receiver is a required component of the system in Europe. When using the Dexcom with an integrated pump, the receiver is technically blocked from connecting to the transmitter.
@meee - It was interesting that you mentioned the new touchscreen receiver does not switch to the horizontal orientation as a different posting had said that the new touchscreen receiver DOES show the graph in both horizontal and vertical orientations. As well, I was wondering with the new touchscreen receiver if you can change the scale of the cgm graph between a max of 300 and 400. Also if the new touchscreen receiver has a 3 hour data backfill capability.
Somewhat separate question for @meee. Do I recall correctly from another post that you are using the Tandem pump? If so, what is the reason you will be using the Dexcom receiver instead of integrated with the Tandem pump?
From your post I’m somewhat relieved that I have the older receiver as I’m on Medicare and I understand that’s the only one we will get. Besides there are many situations where I prefer buttons to touch screens and the heavier size would really irritate me as would the vertical orientation. I wear my G5 receiver on my waistband without a case. I simply affix a swivel clip to the back of the transmitter with a super strong adhesive tape. When I had to switch out the transmitter recently because of a problem with mine it took me more than 20 minutes to peel off the adhesive tape so there’s no way that the receiver is going to fall off of the clip due to a failure of the adhesive tape. The clip was about 5 bucks from Amazon and comes with two sets of clips
Yes it’s very disturbing that they’re ignoring our needs, the people who actually use it. I already called and complained last night so let’s hope they listen to us this time. Are there other things that you don’t like about it besides the size and orientation etc.? I have not used it yet but I’ve decided to give it a try. I ordered a case from tally gear that I can put it on my pump band with. I do not feel this case is going to be protective enough though because it’s made out of that stretchy material. The official dexcom case for the old receiver is made out of leather and is harder so it gives it more protection and it also snaps on securely to your belt.
I have the older tandem and won’t get the integrated one until dec 2018. I also heard there are problems with the new pump integration maybe. I don’t want to deal with that. I prefer to have it separate, I’ve had to have my pump replaced 3 x. So that would mean I’d have no Dexcom until a replacement arrived? That sounds crazy to me. It should be separate or still be an option. Putting too many functions in one device is asking fo trouble imo.
That is crazy that it’s blocked in Europe I hope they don’t start doing that here – I am really getting sick of people pulling all of this garbage of control we should have as many options as possible so that if the device breaks down we are not depending on the pump to do everything for us.
I’m not sure about the orientation because I have not really used it yet except to put the time and date in etc. I tried tilting it horizontally but it doesn’t seem to change.
I have not started a sensor on it yet maybe it will be able to change when I do that? I’m wondering if I should try starting the sensor I have on- it’s already started on my old receiver- can I do that?
If it tilts horizontally I guess I can learn to live with it because dexcom said they are phasing out the old receiver which is a huge mistake in my opinion.
I ordered the tally gear case which can be put on a belt horizontally or vertically. But it is much larger than the old receiver obviously. It may not actually be a lot heavier though but the little flip case with the old receiver is perfect for me, all you have to do to see it is tilted up a bit. It is a hassle if you’re wearing winter clothes so that was why I was thinking of getting the watch eventually. But I have to wait until I get a new iPhone.
This one it is going to be more of a hassle if you’re wearing it on the belt to look at it I think. Also it is bigger so I mean who wants to walk around with that big thing on your waist. I just hope they don’t get rid of the receiver completely if I upgrade to the next tandem pump because that is going to be a disaster in my opinion. I’m wondering about the new system with the new inserter- is it going to have this touchscreen receiver too? They really should have provided a proper case for it. The old case is secure with a snap and will not fall off your belt. Before that I put it in my purse or a pocket and it was falling out and getting lost and was not immediately accessible. Dexcom told me the new system will not use the old sensors so I assume they’re going to block it with an update or make a new receiver. Does that mean they’ll phase out the old senors too?
Of course I don’t know yet for sure but my experience is that touchscreen things tend to break down more easily… I never had problems with the old receivers. I don’t know it kind of reminds me of the new washing machines that arent putting enough water in to wash your clothes. We just had an experience with that where I ordered a Maytag when an old GE profile broke down after 15 years. Well it didn’t break down but the handle broke and it was so old they didn’t make that part anymore. The Maytag was not good you had to run it on bulky sheets in order to have enough water and it was not consistent and took two hours to wash a cycle. So I ended up gettimg a speed queen which is almost totally manual and which they said will last 25 years prolly. It fills the tub and takes 30 minutes tops. There is an econo setting if you want less water usage.
Sounds good about the clip. Where did you get that? All on amazon. I’m confused about what you said about switching the transmitter though. Do you mean the receiver? I’m still worried about adhesives. But I like to be able to flip it to look at it which I can do with my old receiver and case. They should make a similar case. It comes with three silicone cases but no clip. But maybe I can glue one on.
But if they’re phasing it out won’t Medicare have to cover this one eventually too?
Not from our experience. The Tandem X2 and Dexcom G5 integration works fine for us. If you are running integrated, that does NOT mean that you are locked into it. If you want to stop having the pump function as the receiver and switch back to using the Dexcom Receiver - no big deal. Very easy. We have switched back and forth a number of times.
It is not that it is blocked. The receiver works just fine in Europe. However the Receiver is not required to be purchased as part of the Dexcom system. If the people over there just want to buy the Transmitter and the Sensors and use the mobile app that is their choice. Choice is good.
Do you still have your old receiver or did it break and that is why you ordered the new receiver? If the old receiver is not actively connected than on the new receiver you should simply enter the transmitter ID and choose the START SENSOR option and it should connect in a reasonable amount of time. A few minutes to 30 minutes. Hopefully within 5 minutes but could take up to 30 minutes to connect.
It would be quite interesting if you CAN get it to display horizontally.
Ok good. I’m glad they’re not blocking it and you can choose either one. And that there is no trouble with the integration. Good to know…
There’s nothing wrong with my old receiver, they just sent me a new one I guess because it’s been a year and that’s when they told me to get a new one because the warrantee is not covered anymore something. I have not connected it to my current sensor because it’s connected to my old receiver which I’m still using. I just wonder if I can have both receivers connected to the same sensor? So that I can try this new receiver out.
I’m kind of surprised they sent me the new receiver, usually I have to call them but I guess they’re taking care of things more now. They used to call me and tell me it’s time to get a new receiver, they are also sending me the transmitter ahead of time now too which is good actually because I need to have them more often now with the G5. And I don’t have to worry about not having my dex while I wait for the new one to arrive.
But I think they should have asked me if I wanted to switch to this. well I guess they’re phasing it out so there was no choice maybe. When I first switched to the G5 I had to call them up and ask about that.
Correct. Dexcom is marketing it as G5 Mobile - for use with a mobile phone (cellphone) as receiver. I don’t imagine many people purchase the receiver (if any at all).
Like @Dave44 I’m on Medicare and yesterday received my old style receiver. Although I am extremely sad not to be allowed to use my phone and Apple Watch, I am probably happy not to have the touchscreen receiver because of the size. Also glad to be able to avoid the One-Two button screen unlock. I am disappointed with some of the phone features that they left out of the touchscreen receiver. One is that you still have to scroll for calibrations. I am a notoriously bad and careless scroller and have really enjoyed the ability to key in actual numbers on the phone. Another is the inability to change the scale from 400 mg/ml. They indicate that this device will allow software updates remotely so there is hope that features can be deleted and added in the future.
I don’t understand the requirement for the One-Two screen unlock as IMO there is not a huge requirement for security on my CGM monitor. Just another annoyance. One thing I love about the old receiver is the ability to dismiss alerts without looking at the screen. I don’t do it often but occasionally I just need the noise/vibration to stop and I’ll look at the number in a minute or two.
I think that eventually Medicare people will also get this receiver. One thing that I really like about it is the ability to change the brightness.
One of my first calls to tech support was to suggest that they make an update to the receiver to allow us to get rid of the 400 upper limit on the graph. I suggested that they allow us to customize it to a lower level and have it dynamically change if one’s glucose level was to go above the chosen upper limit.
Why not just use it anyway? If you get the Dexcom app on your phone and register it with an alternative email/name/DOB, how would anyone ever know? Medicare isn’t going to be cross-referencing transmitter codes and checking who is using a phone. That will not happen. They have so many other things to deal with, this is small potatoes to them. They just put out their edict and think people will obey, and that is it. They do not have an enforcement program setup. The whole thing is a bogus threat because it will not be enforced. It’s a government agency. It would take them years to be able to get through all the red tape to setup an enforcement for that.
I know the whole idea of it sucks. But really the easiest thing is just to practice civil disobedience and use the phone.
If I followed all the diabetes and insurance rules, the disease would suck. By breaking the D rules, it has become no big deal. The key is making your own rules when it comes to D, and not letting others dictate what you do.
Sorry, just my $0.02 on the issue.
Here is how I handled the issue with them getting rid of the old receiver. I called Dexcom and made it clear to them. I say screw 'em when they do stupid stuff.
I’m confused. You have an older model of the reciever or you got a new one which is changed? I haven’t used the touchscreen yet so I don’t know how it’s different. Will I have to touch two buttons to open it? What a pain and scrolling? I can’t remember if I do that with my rfather iceberg or not. Ugh. I hated the Mobil app on m6 iPad and stopped using it. A ph8 e is not reliable so I’d never want to not have some type of receiver. They told me I’d have to carry both the reciever my iPad etc anyway though. As for the 400 line I just put my high and low at 80-130 so I don’t care where the upper line is.
Hey that’s fine and good and everything, but don’t get me wrong. I am not saying anyone should choose the phone over the receiver or vice versa. I am not saying one is better than the other.
But what I am saying is that YOU should make that choice, not Medicare or some big brother government agency.
I didn’t take what you wrote wrong. I agree with some of what you wrote and understand what you were getting at. I was just saying I’m fine with the receiver
Dexcom is enforcing Medicare rules, I can choose to self-pay and do whatever i want, but Dexcom coverage by Medicare is worth $3000+ per year. Dexcom will stop sending supplies to those who do not follow Medicare guidelines.
