Hidden t:Slim treasure

OMG! That icon is a button!

Today my finger brushed the blue insulin “volume” icon at the top right of my pump’s home screen and it opened a new menu called “current status.” Basically, it’s an executive summary of the settings the pump is using in the moment.

It tells me what profile is being used, the right-this-second basal drip, the last bolus, the current carb ratio, the current correction factor, my BG target, and more.

That’s cool.

Oh, and speaking of the screen, I can’t recall if I told you or not, but the pump’s screen is pretty amazing. It features bold, bright colors on a black background. It looks cool, but I suspect that function might have dictated form in this case

The use of color over black makes the pump easy to read in almost every level of light. It’s not auto-adjusting like my iPod Touch, which senses the surrounding light and makes itself brighter or dimmer as the occasion requires, but the t:slim is a triumph of balanced engineering. In pitch-dark it’s easy on the eyes. In normal room light it’s as bright and clear as a high-end plasma TV. In bright outdoor light it’s not great, but you can still read it. Only in the direct blazing sun are you totally screwed. (Wil’s workaround: cup the pump in your hands to create shade, and hold it close to your face. People will think you are trying to light a cigarette in the wind, but fuck ’em, you need insulin more than you need a good reputation.)

Still, I find the screen pretty amazing. And yes, it’s just bright enough to function well as a navigational nightlight when you have to get up to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night.

Life support system. Cool-looking consumer electronic device. Nightlight.

What more could you want?