I've had the new Resmed Autosense 10 for about a year now. So far so good, I like the funky new features, very 'High Tech'. What that means is, you have so much more control over various settings on the machine. One of which I really like which is the temperature of the hose, very cool feature!
Does the Resmed S8 Escape II EPR system have this? No.
I also like the advanced event detection in the Autosense 10, very slick!
Does the Resmed S8 Escape II EPR system have this? No.
However, what the old Resmed S8 Escape II EPR system DOES have, is reliability! With my Autosense 10, the other night it just completely shut off. It was dead in the water. I immediately panicked because I need my CPAP to basically keep me at 100%. I don't want to think about what would happen after just 2 nights without my cpap. Nothing good, that's for sure. So when it stopped working, I practically freaked out!
I called the company that I got the machine from, and there was a 5 day wait to have the machine looked at. Unacceptable! Not going to work. So, I did my research in this forum, and low and behold the Autosense 10 has an issue with it's power pack. $66 dollars later I purchased a new power pack, insurance wouldn't cover it, and low and behold my machine turned back on!
I am thankful that it turned on, but not happy that it stopped working. Again, having to rely on the machine for my well being, to have it stop working right before I went to bed, unacceptable! Especially for how 'advanced' the machine is supposed to be. What saved me was my old Resmed S8. Oh yes! With over 10k hours of use, I took it out of storage and fired it up. Not only did it work, and had worked for over 8 years without fail, but the pressure was still perfect!!!
So, what did I do? I began my search for the Resmed S8. Not only did I find that you could only purchase used one's, but, they don't make them anymore. Not until I found this company:
<Link removed> Secondwind Cpap
I spoke with the salesman named Mark, who was extremely helpful. He said they had gotten a shipment of these machines in and they were going like hot cakes! I immediately purchased 2 machines, brand new still in their packaging!
Now, does the S8 have all the new functionality as the Autosense 10? No. Do I care? No. Because the S8 did what no other machine I've had do, give me peace of mind. It is a brilliant machine, hands down! If you can get a used one, buy it! Buy it, stick it in your closet and forget about it until you need it. Because believe me, you know when you take it out, it ... will ... work!!!
Even when I brought my Autosense 10 up to the company that I purchased the new $66 dollar power adapter from, even they said that they still to this day have a good amount of people that will not let go of their Resmed S8 machines. I saw on the counter several S8's that were in for reconditioning.
As much as I love the new features on the Autosense 10, nothing, nothing in this world is more comforting than reliability! There's one thing I can not afford, is to be traveling with my Autosense 10 and having the power adapter konk out on me again. So, I'll chuck my S8 in the bag along with me (easy to do because it's so small), and be comforted in knowing that at the bare minimum, I'll have a backup.
**On another note**
One of the things I did to ensure my S8 was staying clean, was I did NOT use the filters that came with the machine. I always use pre-filters that I use for my Air Purifier at home. These filters are much finer and filter out the finest of dust particles, thereby keeping your motor nice and dust free. My first Cpap machine, the first one I ever had, when I switched over to the S8 I opened up the old machine. I noticed the motor was dusty. I immediately upgraded my filter, NOT using the one's the companies suggest, and it's 10 times more efficient with keeping your motor clean. Simply cut them down to size and you're good to go!
I use a charcoal piece and a fine regular filter, so it's effectively using two filters to cover your air entry hole. Don't stuff the entrance with too much, because you don't want to add additional stress on the motor. Again, I used those two filters and my Resmed S8 machine put over 10k hours on it without even breaking a sweat. I currently use it as my backup machine to this day. Remember, keeping your motor dust free is the key to a healthy happy motor, and a reliable motor. This is vital.
I hope this helps, any questions feel free to leave me a message.
Cheers!
-Richard
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