What is the best CPAP to buy?

[Salah]

My doctor recommended to use a CPAP. What is the best one to buy which have all the available facilities, please.

[Otter]

My doctor recommended to use a CPAP. What is the best one to buy which have all the available facilities, please.

Without getting into the more expensive bilevel machines the likely top of the line choices are
Philips Respironics System One REMstar Auto CPAP Machine with A-Flex (aka PR1 Auto)
or
Resmed S9 Autoset

Please do not waste your money on any Resmed machine with "escape" in the name, as these don't log any useful data.

[Ms Piggy]

Personally I like to get something that is easier to travel with, a smaller machine. Read through
the specs on line at cpap.com site to see what appeals to you.

[Emilia]

For travel as well as home use, the DeVilbiss Intellipap Auto Adjust can't be beat. It has a small footprint, integrated humidifier, comes with a great travel bag, and for traveling....and important factor: NO powerbrick!!

The Intellipap is the best selling machine on cpap.com, and it comes with a 3 yr. warranty. I love mine.... had it a year now with no problems at all.

[chunkyfrog]

You may compare features and prices online at CPAP.com, (our hosts)
I, personally love my Precious; but were I to start over, I would go with the Intellipap--the DC cable is very inexpensive.
I could use it in the car!

[cowlypso]

This question is sort of like asking "Which is the best fast food joint in town?" Ask 3 different people, and you'll get 3 different answers.

The top 3 auto models are:
Philips Respironics System One REMstar Auto
Resmed S9 Autoset
DeVilbiss Intellipap Auto Adjust

Beyond this, you're getting into an argument about McDonald's, Burger King, and Wendy's. Everybody's got an opinion, and most people love the machine they have, but all of them are good machines with minor pros and cons. Just depends on which one you prefer.

[Slartybartfast]

All else being pretty much equal, does anyone disagree that the software for the Resmeds is considerably better than the others? That's the one advantage I see that distinguishes it among the others. Were I not interested in using the software, I'd save my money and go with thel least expensive of the three, the Intellipap, which I also own.

[robysue]

All else being pretty much equal, does anyone disagree that the software for the Resmeds is considerably better than the others?

I'd agree that ResScan easily tops Encore Viewer and Encore Pro. But with SleepyHead, that difference in software between the System One and the S9 may be a moot point.

[Otter]

One thing that makes the DeVilbiss Intellipap stand out is the attitude of the company that makes it. While ResMed and Philips seem to regard end users as a dirty secret, DeVilbiss actually has a rep on this forum. It's also has the most customizable ER waveform, and is probably the least likely of the three to disturb your sleep with diagnostic pulses (which it doesn't do) or sudden pressure changes.

Unfortunately, you won't be able to see a breath by breath log with the Intellipap. It will show you the events it logs and when they happened, but you can't look at a graph of the raw data to see whether you agree with the machine's assessment or look for subtle clues about what happened. It also doesn't have a way to determine whether or not your airway is clear. Thus, the IP doesn't quite have "all the available facilities".

I have an S9 Autoset, and while I like it very much, I am a bit dismayed at all the firmware bugs. This is more a matter of principle than a practical problem, though, as reformatting the card and rebooting weekly keeps the bugs in check. None of the bugs I've encountered affected therapy. They've all been data problems. But it doesn't inspire confidence when a machine you are trusting to help you with a serious medical problem is less reliable than Microsoft Windows. Don't get me wrong, though, if I had to choose one of these three again, I'd still get the S9.

[TalonNYC]

And of course, you could ask your doctor to recommend one, as well. Doctors usually send folks for a sleep study to see which features they need, but that's not always possible. In those cases, the doc usually can recommend at least a feature set you need, which you can then bring to CPAP.com to find the best price for those features.

Note that to legally buy a CPAP machine in the USA, you need a prescription from a doctor, not just the recommendation.

[archangle]

And of course, you could ask your doctor to recommend one.

Good God, NO!!! Doctors usually can barely even spell CPAP, let alone know a good one from a bad one. Just think of how many people here say their doctors think Auto CPAP machines are the work of the devil.

[mck]

I agree with otter - I also have the ResMed autoset and I specially like how quiet it is, the screen on the machine which displays a good amount of data- it also is the most attractive looking one.

Like otter I think the software leaves a lot to be desired - it has glitches that ResMed should fix.