I love my iPhone (not necessarily the coverage, but definitely the phone) and I hate logging my glucose data, so I’m always on the lookout for new iPhone apps to help me manage my diabetes. I figure, if I always have my phone close by, surely that will make it easier to stay on top of logging? So when Amy pinged me to have a closer look at a new app called LogFrog, I thought, “Sure, I’d love to give it a try!”
One unique quality of LogFrog, compared with other similar apps, is that it’s actually kind of… cute. Their tag line? A Leap in Diabetes Management. Get it? Leap? Log Frog? Ha ha ha…
In keeping with cute, it’s also very easy to use, and kind of fun, too. The graphics are very bright and colorful. I’ve never been a huge fan of sound effects, but the whizzing and bop bop bop when you are entering your logs makes it feel more like a game. Plus, there’s that perky-looking frog on the screen.
Rather than try to explain how the app works in words, here’s a quick two minute demo from the creators:
LogFrog offers a couple different ways of looking at your info. If you turn the iPhone sideways, you can see a simple graph that charts your blood sugars at various times of the day, and you can also set it so you can look specifically at blood sugars recorded before a meal, at mealtimes, or after a meal, medication or exercise. The more you use it, the more dynamic the graph becomes. There’s also a traditional logbook you can access by clicking on “Log.” It will group blood sugar, food and medication together if done around the same time.
One thing that threw me off is the lack of a Delete button. I actually had to call to ask a rep for help, and she told me that to delete an entry, you just swipe your finger left to right over the entry in the Logbook, and then the Delete button appears. This hidden functionality seems confusing… hopefully they’ll fix that soon!
The user interface for logging blood sugars is fairly simple and intuitive, but I did have some trouble figuring out the blood sugar graph. When I first looked through the app, it was hard to understand what all the different options were for. Once I started loading in several days of blood sugar, medication and food, then I could see what each section was designed to do. So basically, the graph area isn’t really intuitive until you get into it.
One thing that’s really cool is the option to export your data as a clearly-labeled logbook, which is sent to you via email in the body of the email, rather than as an attachment. I’ve had issues with downloading logs that are exported as an Excel document, especially now that I am on a Mac and don’t have the Excel program.
The LogFrog option is also great if you can email your doctor, or if you work with a diabetes educator, or if your child is away and you need an easy way to check up on him or her. You can also use the app to record your A1C, and you can indicate whether it was done at home or at a lab. Since that’s the lab result that most of us are most concerned with, it’s a nice touch to have it on hand, to reflect on as a starting point. The “More” section also shows you your 7 day, 30 day and 90 day averages.
So how does it compare to other diabetes iPhone apps? I have used two: Glucose Buddy and BloodWise. LogFrog is not as in-depth with info tracking, and the graphs are limited to just BG numbers, so if you’re interested in tracking food or exercise, you might want to try another app. But if you’re just looking for something fun to use to keep track of BG trends, then this will work just fine. I also found LogFrog simple to update, in contrast to Glucose Buddy, for example, which required a lot of time to input everything. Again, some people might find the more in-depth logging process worthwhile. At the end of the day, you need to ask yourself what you really want out of the app. I think “fun” is underestimated.
LogFrog is not free, but it comes in at an easy to manage $2.99. It’s also only available on iPhones, so there is a bit of a limit to its reach.
Overall, I enjoyed playing around with this app, and while I can’t say for sure that I’ll use it forever, it’s certainly a nice tool to have on my phone. Just in case I get miraculously motivated to log…
Do you use an app to manage your diabetes? If so, which one is your favorite? What do you like about it? Rest assured, these developers and others are listening!
We have been using (and highly recommend) the Diabetes Diary app to manage our toddlers T1 data. Very simple yet comprehensive! The developer of the app has T1 and is also very helpful and responsive.
I’m going to be downloading that tonight! Thanks for the heads up on that one.
I’ve been using Track3, another pay app. It’s on the pricier side for an app ($6) but it doesn’t break the bank either. It is a little limited, especially for a pump user, but it allows enough customization with some creativity thrown it, it is quite useable. For example, I add “high” and “low” as medications, so I can log and later pinpoint when I have a high/low to compare.
I had the same delete issue – which I discovered how to do by accident. I think it is a “feature” for many apps. This one also has a decent database for food and restaurants, which can also be customized and added to your daily log. It also has a section for exercise which I haven’t tried yet. Finally it will also let you email data, which comes as a text xt delimited file – also useable, but I think it would be nice to have a choice of formats for export.
All in all, Track3 is pretty decent, but I’m looking forward to trying out both the frog app (I like the cute factor) and the diabetes diary mentioned by MG. Thanks
This looks interesting. I agree about the fun element – keeps us interested. I’ve always been a fan of the WaveSense app, and this looks like it has similar elements. I will be so excited when there is an app I can just download Caleb’s pump to.
I still think the WaveSense app is the best (prettiest, easy to use, and free!).
I have been using the new iBGStar app for for a couple of weeks now and am pretty happy with it as you can create *as many* user defined data as you wish (food, sports, medication, any other notes).
That is what I found missing in most apps.
I also love the big friendly display: very easy input. Line chart for 3,7, 30 or 90 days. Your “score cards” change color when you are outside your defined range. Nice visual reminder.
Export data as .csv file or directly in email from ipod/iphone. A few bugs here with the way commas are interpreted when you have notes with more than one item (e.g. “apple, coffee”). This messes up the export.
A few minor display details in the log book need to be worked out with next update, but nice enough beginnings.
Just hope the matching meter to attach to the iphone will be out soon, looks like a few more weeks at least in Germany. The next diabetes fair is on March 25 and Sanofi will only show the meter and hand out vouchers so you can register for one.
Allison, you might want to download Open Office (free! software) which has word processing and spreadsheet components (as well as a few others I’m forgetting) and they seem to be compatible with Microsoft Office files.
I’ve tried a number of these apps and have decided that I prefer my paper-based log since it’s quicker….but when I can use my phone as my meter I’ll definitely be there!
I wrote BGs down in a log book for YEARS. I was really good about (frighteningly good, in fact), and then I got pregnant. I also started going to an endo whose clinic downloads meters. So I switched from having about three or four meters to using just one meter and not writing anything down. Now, two kids and many years later, I don’t think I could go back to writing BGs down (although it is a VERY useful tool). I also will always go to a provider who has downloading capabilities. I spend enough time on computers, I’ll let them deal with that part of it! Of course, that might change too, one day, so stay tuned
.
my partner uses glucose buddy. he recently got the iphone and used a different app for his droid phone. he logs all of his bgs but not the meds and food intake. for him, he’s made logging the numbers part of his checking routine. he grabs his phone and meter at the same time, so after he has a number, he enters it and gets on with taking a shot or exercise or whatever he was going to do. it’s become so routine for him and he loves looking at the graphs, etc that he never forgets to log anymore.
I use the Diabetes Pilot app – mainly because I got sick of looking at and trying different apps and this one did most of what I wanted – including being able to export it to its companion software so that you can print out log books for doctor’s visits plus a few other things. I’ve been quite happy with it but only use the BG component. I’d love to be able to record things like my a1c levels and other information of interest to me.
I was just diagnosed this week and have been exploring the various apps. Being an efficiency nut, I’m looking for an iPhone app that will upload the data (reading and time of day) directly from the glucose meter.
Has anyone found a meter/app combo that does this? Perhaps I’ve found my next vocation. . . to develop this.
In doing my own sleuthing. . . Looks like this one is on it’s way. I just sent the company a note asking for an ETA and way of getting on a list to be notified when it’s available. I’ll keep you posted.
http://ibgstar.com:80/web/ibgstar/training_tutorials/training_tutorials
@Dana – See our coverage of the iBGStar announcement:
http://www.diabetesmine.com/2010/09/newsflash-sanofi-aventis-launches-ibgstar-plug-in-glucose-meter-for-the-iphone.html
There are MANY other promising products on the horizon too, many of which we’ve covered here at the ‘Mine. Please see also, the 2009 winner of the DiabetesMine Design Challenge:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fg-yqfknE08
[...] LogFrog Diabetes iPhone App Scores High on Cuteometer …Mar 9, 2011 … A Leap in Diabetes Management. Get it? Leap? Log Frog? Ha ha ha… In keeping with cute, it’s also very easy to use, and kind of fun, too. [...]