Product Review: The MiniMed 630G System

Perspectives

Product Review: The MiniMed 630G System

By Phyllis Kaplan, MiniMed Ambassador, living with type 1 diabetes

After 16 years of using insulin pump therapy with Medtronic Diabetes, I was excited to see the updated design of the MiniMed® 630G system. After seeing pictures online, I thought the new insulin pump looked bigger, and I wondered if the new system was much different than my MiniMed® 530G system. I did have some doubts about upgrading, but in the end, the appeal of being able to bolus from the meter, the larger screen, and options to change the volume, won me over. 

Prior to receiving the new system, I assumed that it would be fairly easy to understand and almost like getting used to a new phone, but I was still anxious about it. It turns out my assumption was correct. The MiniMed 630G system has been easy for me to get used to and just makes sense to me. The day I met with my trainer, as she walked me through setting everything up, I kept thinking “Wow, this is awesome.” One thing I appreciate is the polished, current look and feel.

On top of what the new MiniMed 630G system looks like, there are also so many other features that I really like. Here are a few of my favorites: 

1) The home screen: I call this screen “diabetes at a glance,” as it's easy to see and find the things we tend to use most often:

  •  CGM data: I didn’t think it was hard to find the CGM information on the MiniMed 530G system, but being able to see the CGM reading and graph from this screen feels right. The CGM data now includes sensor graphs, so you don’t need to wait to upload to CareLink® software to see this representation of the data.
  • Active insulin: It’s wonderful to see active insulin right on the main screen! No more going through several menus and multiple button clicks!
  •  Bolus and basal: With the click of a button, you can go to the bolus or basal menu, though the default is understandably set on the bolus button.

2)  Status bar:

 The status bar has been expanded. It not only shows battery, insulin, and the time, it now includes the estimated time until the next calibration and days remaining on the sensor, with icons that are easy to decipher.

3) Guardian® Link transmitter:

  • Stronger signal: I used to get weak signals between my transmitter and insulin pump a few times a week, especially at night. Since starting the MiniMed 630G system, I haven’t gotten any!

4)    Vertical color screen with auto-brightness: Part of the updated look and feel is that the insulin pump is now vertical and has a larger display screen:

  • The large color screen with auto-brightness is incredible. 
  • The screen dims after a set amount of time to conserve the battery. 
  • The screen comes to life with the press of any button and adjusts automatically. Viewing the display in bright sun or in the dark is no longer an obstacle!

5)    Remote bolus: 

Before receiving the MiniMed 630G system, the only time I have typically  gone into the restroom to deliver a bolus has been when wearing a dress, and not having the pump easily accessible. With the remote bolus, now I don’t have to! I can deliver a pre-set bolus, or manually set the bolus right from the meter.

6) Alarms:

I never thought I’d say this, but I like the alarm sounds. They are friendlier in tone, and there are 5 options for the volume of the alarms. I don’t often use the vibrate feature, but there is now an option to have the insulin pump vibrate and have sound at the same time. Having more choices for alarms is a great addition!

If you were like me and are initially worried about the slight increase in size, don’t let that scare you. It is a little bit bigger and a little bit heavier to accommodate the larger battery (AA), but I surprisingly had an easy time adjusting to both the size and vertical layout. Plus, I think the larger screen and vertical navigation make it appear bigger than it actually is. 

Also, if you’re like me, I know you’ll be anxious to get started on the system as soon as it arrives but definitely wait until training. Even though the settings are intuitive, there are more options and choices to make, which can be overwhelming and lead to missing a step, which you don’t want so you can take complete advantage of this new system.

Editor’s Note: While Phyllis is one of the first group of people to get started on a MiniMed 630G system, you may have also heard that Medtronic recently received FDA approval for the MiniMed® 670G system, the world’s first hybrid closed loop system. We won’t have that product available until the spring, but that’s no reason to wait. Through our Priority Access program, if you get started on MiniMed 630G system now, you will be first in line for the MiniMed 670G system once available and have the opportunity to get used to the new MiniMed pump platform. The upgrade could also be as little as $0 for those who qualify (restrictions may apply). To learn more, please visit: http://www.medtronicdiabetes.com/products/priority-access

Important Safety Information

The MiniMed 530G and 630G systems with SmartGuardTM technology are intended for the delivery of insulin and continuous glucose (CGM) monitoring for the management of diabetes mellitus in persons 16 years of age or older who require insulin. Insulin infusion pumps and associated components of insulin infusion systems are limited to sale by or on the order of a physician and should only be used under the direction of a healthcare professional familiar with the risks of insulin pump therapy. The systems are not intended to be used directly for preventing or treating hypoglycemia but to suspend insulin delivery when the user is unable to respond to the Threshold suspend (530G) or Suspend on low (630G) alarm and take measures to prevent or treat hypoglycemia themselves. The information provided by CGM systems is intended to supplement, not replace, blood glucose information obtained using a blood glucose meter. A confirmatory fingerstick via a CONTOUR®NEXT LINK portfolio meter*, is required prior to making adjustments to diabetes therapy. Always check the pump display when using a CONTOUR®NEXT LINK portfolio meter*, to ensure the glucose result shown agrees with the glucose results shown on the meter.  Additional, warnings, precautions and contraindications apply.  See www.medtronicdiabetes.com/support/download-library/user-guides and www.medtronicdiabetes.com/importantsafetyinformation for details.

*The CONTOUR®NEXT LINK 2.4 Meter is used with the MiniMed 630G system. The CONTOUR®NEXT LINK Meter is used with the MiniMed 530G system.