Is it a big secret that the Dexcom G4 transmitter is only guaranteed for 6 months? Mine has a dead battery after 11 months. On the Seven system I never had to replace a transmitter in 6 years. Tech support told me that the battery goes dead quicker due to extended range. Screw extended range - a new transmitter is $650.00. VERY DISPLEASED with Dexcom. This loyal customer is going shopping for alternatives.
The design is small but it would have been possible to make the battery replaceable. So this is clearly another case of planned obsolescence. Plus it is unfriendly to the environment and hard to recycle. I wonder how many users are willing to pay $650 every year or more in addition to all the other expenses. The strategy of Dexcom is hard to understand here. Mass produced electronic devices are really cheap - and people now that. They could sell the transmitters for the production costs and would make enough money with the overpriced sensors alone. Instead they prefer the double rip-off of their customers. Well, at least it is motivational for the competition.
Unfortunately, there isn't much competition; I'm not willing to go with Medtronic's CGM, although my son uses it. I do agree that it's a ripoff though.
Edited to add: too bad the Navigator isn't around to give them competition!
Transmitter battery warranty is 6 months for Dexcom and has always been 6 months for Medtronic. They may last longer but hands down Dexcom has been far superior in performance than Medtronic ever was for me. I have no complaints and am very happy I switched. My Gen 4 transmitter lasted a little over a year which was several months longer than the projected 9 months. I’ve always been notified of the manufacturer warranty for all cgms products for both Medtronic and Dexcom for as long as I’ve been a customer so it was no surprise to me.
I personally would not want a replaceable transmitter battery I think it would drive the overall cost and or size up in order to make it waterproof. Or be more likely to fail or have dropped readings due to water damage if the seal failed.
I agree completely with DianaS. I knew the warranty on all the components of the Dexcom G4 system and was lucky enough to get 13 months out of my first transmitter. I am getting at least 2 weeks and often better than 3 weeks from a sensor which in my book is worth every penny. The extended range allows me to leave the receiver in the middle of a tennis court and not miss a reading during a practice or match. This is one of the reasons I got the Dexcom in the first place.
Good luck with your search for alternatives. Abbott Navigator which I heard was a really good system, is not available in the US. So basically that leaves the Medtronic CGM which quite frankly is a piece of crap.
Been doing a trial run on the Medtronic CGM for 3 days and yeah...it sucks! So unfortunately, there isn't much shopping around to be done. I can't wait for my Dexcom system to arrive sometime next week. I put in my first medtronic sensor a few days ago and the needle didn't go all the way in. It bled like crazy and I had to pull it. $30 down the drain and medtronic will do nothing to replace it. At least Dexcom is will to replace their sensors when things go awry.
I like my Dexcom CGM. I have worn one nonstop for 6 years. My experience with the Seven system was I never had to replace a battery - ever. I agree with Holger, the business model sucks. Think about the cost structure for strips and meters - you are forever a customer buying the manufacturers strips. But with little effort you can get a free meter. I understand the R&D costs are high, and they have to recover that expense. Check NASDAQ and look who owns DexCom. They are owned by a group 15 major fund companies. I'm pretty sure Wadell & Reed Financial Inc and Blackrock Fund Advisors don't give rip whether I can afford a replacement transmitter or not. The business model is predicated on insurance companies paying most of the high price, and - voila! The US is in the upward spiral of medical costs. But DexCom stock is rated a "Buy", The fund companies are all doing well, and the insurance companies are profitable. Oh, and the model has many of the attributes of a monopoly. If the alternatives are squeezed out of the market it looks worse.
I will second that Clare! "Medtronic CGM is quite frankly a piece of crap". Side by side...there is no comparison.
Wow three days and your a MiniMed know it all...
I have used the Medtronic RT system for 7+ years and have had Zero issues, No problems. Never had a problem asking for a replacement sensor, infusion set or even a pump, never turned away, never refused, all I have had to do is ask. My accuracy has been good, very good.
Con: The soft sensor was sometimes painful to install but that's been fixed with the new 90 degree Enlite sensor.
The new Enlite sensor: Comfortable, easy to install, and my SG has been the same as my BG average...never off more than 2-3% during a weeks wear time.
Con: The new sensor has not been very successful beyond it's advertised 6-7 day limit and I think the Dexcom is going to prove to be more cost effective as far as daily cost (many PWD's can get double the wear time out of a Dex sensor).
If I was paying out of pocket for a CGM I would lean toward the DexG4 simply because it has shown to have a lower daily cost if you brake a few rules.......JMHO
I'm very glad it is working well for you JohnG. I think for some select people (you and acidrock) the Medtronic CGM is accurate and works well. My colleague at work just recently got the 530G after years with the paradigm revel. The CGM part never worked well for him but he is familiar with and likes the pump so he stayed with Medtronic when his 4 years were up. The soft sensor is not "sometimes" painful to insert, it is always painful to insert. I did read that the new Enlite sensor is much less painful to insert which is certainly a step in the right direction.
I break all the rules. I have had the Dexcom G4 since November 2012 so I am a few years behind you in CGM use. In that time I have had sensors last 26 days with really good accuracy. I wear the sensor in unapproved (read comfortable) places (back of arms, thighs, butt) I may even venture to one of the "girls" before too long. I do have to be thoughtful though before insertion because the sensor could be in for more than 3 weeks. I have always gotten excellent customer service from tech support and they have never refused to replace a sensor on the rare occasions it fails before 7 days.
I am not paying out of pocket for the G4. My insurance covers 12 sensors every 90 days. But if I was paying for a CGM I too would choose G4 not just for the lower daily cost but for the accuracy and comfort of the sensor. While Medtronic may win in a few select categories - comfort of insertion for instance. The mard scores and sensor life are firmly in favor of the G4.
Just keep in mind that, relatively speaking, these are not "mass produced". The difference in size between the general population as a market, and the diabetes community is enormous.
Dexcom sells to a fraction of that market.
While the cost to manufacture tens of millions of, say, Bluetooth headsets might be $25 each, tens of thousands might be $200 each when the one-time costs of development and manufacturing (molds, templates, solder masks, manufacturing equipment, etc.) are amortized over the life of the product.
I appreciate that Dexcom constantly works to improve their system but it is indeed hard to accept $650 as a fair price for a single transmitter. I would have not believed it before dx if someone had told me it would cost me $8.50 per day to pump and CGM (and I still wouldn't feel "normal" like pre-dx).
How does one define "fair"?
Looking at Dexcom financials, they're certainly not experiencing outsized profitability -- indeed, they're losing money!
So again, what is a "fair" price?
Sadly, far far too many people do not understand economics, business finance and cashflow, etc. to make reasonable judgments about these things.
Given the Dexcom financials, seems to me a "fair" price for their products is quite a bit higher than what they're charging.
"Fair" and "do I like paying it" are two entirely different things. Certainly no one here thinks it's fair to demand something from someone else at a loss.
Okay, off my soapbox now, and on to some explanation. The market for CGM's is exceedingly tiny. Type 2's can all but be ignored, as so few of us use CGMs as to be irrelevant in the numbers. T1's comprise about 10% of diagnosed diabetics. There are about 18 million diagnosed diabetics in the US. That leaves a market of about 2 million T1s. Don't know how many T1's are using CGM's, but I can't imagine it's more than 10% (I strongly suspect it's much fewer).
So that leaves a market of about 200,000, split between two competitors. Dexcom has the lion's share, but the majority of a tiny market is, unfortunately, tinier.
When it takes many billions to develop tech like this, and there is a very tiny market in which to recoup those expenses, the price of the product is going to be massively greater than the manufacturing cost.
Sadly, we don't get these things unless we pay for them.
The good news is, the CGM market is project to grow substantially over the rest of the decade, as this technology is adopted more and more as a standard treatment device. This will bring the prices down.
However, don't ever expect a transmitter for less than $150-$300... the market size won't support it. It's not a cell phone.
As for the criticisms of the business model, these are also misplaced. It's the right business model if Dexcom wants to stay in business, and some day actually make a profit. I know I want them to.
How about the rest of you?
I'm not sure the company is turning a profit these days, and there aren't many alternatives. I don't think it is reasonable for them to have replaceable batteries, but I'd be willing to take on more weight for a 2-3 year lifespan. Still a solar cell on the front would probably be good enough. Maybe have Casio produce the things for them.
I think the market itself is big enough, but they have to be able to tap into it. Maybe if it weren't for the insurance company and MD barriers, they could simply mass produce and lower the costs I'm sure it is possible with volume to produce the receiver and transmitter for about $30 a pop, and then if they sell the sensors for 1/2-1/3rd as much, I think their market would explode globally. But as it is, many of us even with good insurance can't afford their product. They've apparently started making the sensors so they last about 10 days now (no more extending the life out), so they've taken the milk us for all we'e worth approach.
BTW Joe, any chance of you disecting the transmitter to see if it can be modded (new battery). I'd love to get my hands on a couple before mine dies. Cut it open, toss in a bigger batter, epoxy over it, and accept a little more weight. :) Might not be possible, but I'm gonna try.
Good points, I should have used "affordable" instead of "fair." Hopefully the technology will develop in ways that reduce the cost to manufacture.
Couldn't agree more Clare. I put on a G4 and didn't feel a thing. No bruising. My G4 will be here tomorrow and I plan to run Medtronic and Dex side by side for a few days to compare. My stomach looks terrible from two Medtronic CGM insertions. I can't believe how much I bruise and bleed from it. Also, I don't seem to get accurate results until day 2 or three and it is still 30 points off. Today it has been averaging 100 points off.
Just wondering John if your sites always look this bad too when you aren't using the enlite? I've been using the Soft Sensors. Just wonder how you get the thing to be accurate. I follow the rules and only calibrate when told to and never, ever calibrate when sugars are unstable. I like that the Medtronic is flat and doesn't stick out, but so far I just don't see any other advantages to it. I'm not trying to be "know it all"....just speaking about my personal experience thus far.
I also agree with Clare based on personal experience. I tried the Medtronic CGM before I knew about the Dexcom. It hurt so bad both during insertion and after it was inserted that I told my CDE that if that was the only option, I just wasn't going to do it. Dexcom insertion is a breeze compared to what I experienced.
Good idea. And I have just the friend that can do it. Stand by for results!