The Contour Next One meter and app from Ascensia Diabetes Care.
The Contour Next One is a meter which seamlessly connects to the Contour Diabetes app. The Contour meter range is well-known in the UK but until recently was under the auspices of Bayer, the huge pharmaceutical company. However the diabetes care business was recently sold by Bayer and launched as an independent, dedicated company called Ascensia Diabetes Care. The name Ascensia used to be one of the product names ‘Ascensia Contour’ so Diabetes Specialist Nurses may know the name well, but patients might not be as familiar.
The company is launching its first new product since being established as Ascensia next month with the launch of its Contour Next One meter. The Contour Next One seamlessly connects to the new Contour Diabetes App which works on iOS and Android devices and will be available to download from today, 19th October, in the App and Google Play stores. It’s not the first meter and app combo, but it comes with pedigree. Aided by the use of a smartLIGHT feature it uses a colour coded system to give you instant feedback on your blood glucose control, letting you know if your result is above, within or below target. It also has graphs and alerts.
It’s possible to order the new meter from the 3 October with the first meter distribution taking place later that month. You can order using the following link, www.contournextone.co.uk/DES16. With the tagline, ‘your diabetes, illuminated,’ the plan is connectivity for all, not just niche audiences (a while back it was for those who wanted to download to PCs, now it’s anyone with a smartphone), as it is intuitive, simple and easy to use.
The Contour Diabetes app will only work with this new meter. Its worth noting that the accuracy of the new Contour Next One meter exceeds the recommended ISO standards while using the same Contour Next test strip that is widely used already and on prescription. The meter also has a Second-Chance sampling feature which allows you to re-apply more blood to the same test strip within 60 seconds saving the need to repeat finger pricking wasted strips.
App ready
The meter is ‘app ready’ out of the box, you just need to download the app. All the data it collects is stored in the Cloud, which means you can log in to it from anywhere. Likewise, the user can give permissions to allow parents and carers to log in to view. Patterns and trends can be shared from your phone. Up to 800 readings are stored in the meter, with more stored in the Cloud. ‘smartLIGHT’ technology indicates if your reading is above, within or below target. It’s an easy way to quickly understand your blood glucose status.
Parents and carers would be interested in the app’s capacity to be set so that if the user has a low reading, the mobile can automatically phone a designated contact. It’s also good to know that the app can be used on multiple devices (it can be used on an iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch or on other Android smartphones and tablets), allowing for greater flexibility. It’s also very easy to use, aiming to help people to make sense of blood glucose readings with personalised insights. The folk at Ascensia Diabetes Care are also keen to point out that, over time the app will evolve.
Sometimes technology can seem overwhelming. But sometimes, you just know when something not only looks good, but feels right. This is one of those times. www.contournextone.co.uk/DES16
This news item first appeared in Desang Diabetes Magazine, our free-to-receive digital journal. We cover diabetes news, diabetes management equipment (diabetes kit) and news about food suitable for a diabetic diet. Go to the top of this page to sign up – we just need your email address.
