I powered my iphone off for an hour and the Dexcom receiver refused to pair with the G6 transmitter. I think that is proof positive that the G6 receiver slot is used by the pod and the receiver will be inoperable with the Omnipod 5. Looking forward to the G7 which hopefully lets us use the receiver again with the Om5.
I’ve tried just about everything I can dream up and the G6 receiver will not pair with the G6 transmitter while the Om5 has an active pod. I managed to get the Dex receiver paired today after deactivating an Om5 pod. After starting the new pod, Omnipod PDM paired successfully with G6 transmitter but when I came back within range of the (previously paired) G6 receiver…no dice, will not pair.
Spoke with Insulet tech support and while the tech understood the issue and commiserated with me, there is no solution. G6 receiver is not usable with Omnipod 5.
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So it takes the receiver slot, not the phone slot.
That makes sense. If it took the phone slot, you would no longer be able to share with Dexcom Follow. That would be a problem for many people.
Thanks for verifying it. 
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Hopefully the g7 will help things with that extra slot. The pdm takes the pdm
Slot so only slot left is the phone slot. That’s for your phone so you can use the deck app and share. Not the best but is what we have to work with.
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Neat. I quite respect Dexcom for that (I have a generally low opinion of them); the O5 preempts the Dexcom receiver and the Dexcom cannot get it back. That works.
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While I agree that it all makes sense from a that’s how it works perspective, it seems bush league for the G6 receiver to be rendered worthless for everybody using Omnipod 5. Deep down I feel like I got ripped off somehow. I went for a few years wearing the Dex receiver on a waistband while playing ice hockey and had a pretty good routine going. Now I bring my iphone out to the bench and find a “safe” spot to lean it for BG checks during hockey games. Even with fingers crossed I bet that phone does not last until November.
Not being a tech guy I am semi clueless but would it have been a big deal for Dexcom to add a slot or come up with some other fix so those of us who use both the iphone and the receiver could continue doing so? By big deal I mean would it have cost Dexcom more than a nickel per transmitter. We’re supposed to come up with our own workarounds because Dexcom would not upgrade the transmitter?
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you could go back to the omnipod dash, loop, byoda, and still use your dexcom receiver, but it might be time consuming
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For hockey games, I could come up with a workaround for you. I have one in mind.
(actually I have 2 in mind)
Do you use the closed loop stuff while playing? Or do you turn that off?
There is not much of a tech reason for the limitation. This was more of a decision they made years ago, before any of this stuff was happening (before the DIY Loop, before the Tandem closed loop, before the omnipod closed loop).
They could easily fix it.
But like most things in the health-industry space, it would take 1 week to implement and cost the development team a few thousand dollars. And then it would take years to test, and cost millions of dollars to get it tested and approved.
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I’ve been experimenting with the Om5 settings for hockey. Tried and rejected the “activity” setting which is set to a BG goal of 150. Too high for me and too easy to overshoot with high BG pre game. Went to the standard “auto mode” which has a BG goal setting of 110. Seems to work fine although I have had to guzzle some glucose a few times to boost up the BG (that is what I use the Dexcom for…I rarely get low enough for alerts, I try to catch the impending lows preemptively)…
So to answer your question, yes I’ve been using the closed loop during hockey games and workouts and have had success with it. But that success depends on treating impending lows early, based on CGM trend. The Om5 has been working well enough that I have no plans to go back to Dash.
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This thread has given me a greater understanding of dexcom and I appreciate that! I had no idea that there was a receiver slot. I just thought the transmitter could only connect with two things and the receiver was just the second device and no different than my cell.
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So if you wanna do that, you need to use the phone slot for your on-ice Dexcom readings, because the omnipod5 needs the receiver slot. If that is the case, there is really only 1 option. (My other idea involved you still using your receiver as you had been doing, but turning off the loop with omnipod5 and directing it to a different (non-existent transmitter.))
So the simple way would be to use the phone slot. But of course you don’t want to carry a phone on the ice!
But you could use this:
forum.fudiabetes.org/t/new-bluejay-gts-watch
Since the watch can be set to either use the receiver or phone slot, you would set it phone, and only use it during games. Just turn OFF your Dexcom app on your phone during games so there is no interference when you are on the bench.
It’s small, could either be worn on your wrist under your gloves, or attached to your waistband.
And everything else would still work, looping with the omnipod would still work, etc.
And it’s only about $100, so not too expensive.
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Great idea! If I understand correctly, the Blue Jay GTS watch reads directly from G6 transmitter, iPhone can and should be turned off? That will be perfect. Omnipod 5 can continue to do its thing and BG can be monitored with watch… Will probably get a lot of use out of the watch this summer.
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I keep my watch set on the receiver slot now, all the time.
I only use the watch when I leave the house, in which case I am not bringing my receiver. So the receiver and watch never get in each other’s way.
Since the watch is using the receiver slot, it also does not interfere when I am Looping (which in my case is the iPhone).
So for you, it would be the opposite setup - phone instead of receiver slot - but the same kind of idea.
(BTW, the first few days with the watch take patience. But once you have it all figured out, it’s pretty easy.)
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I haven’t had any problems that I can identify with the current two slot behavior other that a lack of documentation; while it is clear that only two things can bind it was not clear to me until @John58’s experiment that one slot is dedicated to the app that controls the transmitter (starts the sensor, I assume).
Since I use the G6 without calibration I don’t actually need a controlling app (I’ve never used a G5; I gave up after the G4). I can’t see any reason for an O5 user to need more than one slots given that the O5 is getting the readings of the G6 in place. Going back to MDI of course means getting the readings some other way, but going back to MDI implies a pod change. I guess, since it doesn’t imply a sensor change, having a second slot for a follower may help at that point. The G7 makes no difference to that; the transmitter is happy to change controllers at a sensor change (I tested that.)
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Does that work? If there’s only one slot the Dexcom app on the phone takes it, so how can the Dexcom receiver work?
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if he went back to the dash and looped with the apple version, you can use the phone for the dash, and still use the receiver… i would have recommended the bluejay, but john58 uses apple phones
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Not going back to the Dash. Omnipod 5 is definitely an improvement over Dash. The flatline while asleep is actually pretty amazing and that takes care of about 1/3 of the day. It’s possible to limp through the hockey games without the G6 receiver for a while. I’ll try that Bluejay watch.
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@John58,
For my understanding, since I have not used either.
Do O5 and Dash use all the same components - same pods and same PDM phone?
Or is it totally different hardware used for the 2 systems?
And if it is the same hardware, is the only difference that you just need to get something installed on your PDM phone to go from one to the other? Or is there more involved in the switch?
Thanks!
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The Omnipod 5 has all new/different pods and PDM. The cool thing about it is the pods get updated BG from the CGM and will make adjustments to your basal without the PDM. The PDM is really only needed to change from auto to manual or back again, and to manually bolus, set a temp basal, etc.
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That’s the one thing that still keeps me using it. My numbers when I first started must not have been very accurate, because it is still learning me nearly 7 pods or so later! it’s definitely not very agressive. But I am also a very high dose insulin person and it’s nothing to go through 100 units per day for both basal/bolus.
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