You won’t get a lot of feedback on the Medtronic 770/780G. There just aren’t a lot of people using them. There was enough disfavor with the 670G, that as the warranties expire, most people are choosing to move to Tandem instead. In fact, the future of Medtronic’s diabetes division is hanging in the balance because it’s bleeding money. They have not announced a divestment, but at their last investor’s call there was talk about re-evaluating their portfolio of under-performing product lines, with specific mention of the diabetes division, and it was clearly stated that they need to ask the question “are we the right owners of these assets?”. So they are most definitely considering getting out of the pump game.
The is a Facebook group devoted entirely to the 780G. You should consider joining that to get the best first person perspectives. It was released in the European market first (because Control-IQ wasn’t there yet!), and this site is mostly Americans. The general consensus I saw was that it was a big improvement over the 670G, but does that bring it up to par with the other systems?
I’ve been very happy with Tandem and Control-IQ. I won’t say it’s perfect, but it’s been really excellent and has enabled the absolute best management of my life. It’s still in it’s first generation, with at least 2 updates in the near future, so it’ll be getting even better. It is still the only system allowing a low, narrow target range (sleep mode, 112.5-120).
I’ve been enough of a Tandem fan that I’m also excitedly awaiting Tandem’s next pump system, the Mobi. It’s half the size of the current T:slim, mostly because it has no screen. It’ll be primary controlled via your cell phone, though it will continue to work 100% when you are not near your phone. There will eventually be a plethora of wear options, including what is essentially a cannula docking station that will turn it into a patch pump just like Omnipod.
They’ve been sitting on that one for a long time, though. It’s not anticipated until next year now. Which has me really looking closely at Omnipod 5. I think it could be a contender. The haven’t released their pivotal study yet, though, which is where we’ll learn so the inside details about it and patient performance on it. Until then, it’s all speculation.
Omnipod 5 appears to more like Medtronic’s Automode, with frequent micro-boluses and little settings control, unlike Control-IQ which is entirely dependent on your own settings. Omnipod did seem to have addressed some of the biggest complaints about Medtronic’s system, though. It looks like you can bolus whatever you want whenever you want, whereas Medtronic doesn’t allow that and if you want to give a manual correction you have enter imaginary carbs you didn’t eat, because that’s the only way to get a bolus. And as someone who’s personal insulin needs are volatile and always changing, I think I might be happy to give some control over to the Omnipod 5 algorithm, rather than constantly adjusting my settings. Assuming the algorithm works!
From what I’ve gathered, Omnipod 5’s algorithm is entirely dependent on your TDD and Dexcom predictions. The only time your other settings matter is with your very first pod, or when the algorithm isn’t active. I think the video linked in the previous post seriously overstates the learning ability, though, when the only thing it brings forward from the previous session is the TDD. So, if your insulin needs are trending higher or lower, the next pod will know to be more or less aggressive. Maybe that’s a really big thing, maybe it isn’t?
@Terry4 recently shared a video with several Omnipod 5 trial participants, and a nurse who was active with the study and knows a lot of the inside details. The nurse and trial participants were all involved with the juvenile study, and children tend to be much more difficult to manage, while the people posing the questions are all DIY loopers, who tend to be very critical of the commercial systems because they don’t allow low enough glucose targets. There’s a disparity between what the questioners are looking for vs. what the juvenile participants, their parents, and their medical people want… so you’ve got to kind of read down the middle to find the truth of things. One of the positives I took away from the video was that even though the lowest possible BG target is 110, people were able to consistently sit at lower levels.
My biggest concern right now about Omnipod 5 is I don’t know how much I trust 60 minute predictions. Dexcom just isn’t that good with 30 minute predictions, especially when it changes directions quickly, how good can 60 minute predictions be? I’ll be curious to see if Omnipod 5 is casting some magic on those predictions.
