Why?
This is what past history tells us:
- All models within a product iteration are the same hardware
- All S9s were the same
- All Air10s were the same
- And now with the release of the AirCurve 11, this pattern appears to have continued
- The AirSense 11 appears to use the same algorithm as the 10. If there are any therapy differences they are so subtle as to have gone undetected since the Air 11 release, 2.5 years ago.
- There have been countless teardowns and comparisons between the Air11 and Air10. Comparisons have shown that the Air11 really isn't superior and a lot of comparisons still prefer the Air 10
- The blower in the Air 10 is superior the Air11 uses the same smaller blower as the AirMini
- The humidifier tank on the Air11 is a downgrade. They both have an advertised capacity of 380ml, the flatter design of the Air11 leads to spills and less usable capacity.
- The Air11 has removed the hose swivel design, this constrains the hose and means less usable space.
- Redesign of all consumables (heated hose, filters, tanks) on the Air11. Obsoleting existing spare parts and one must keep two sets of spare parts if an Air10 is kept as a spare.
- Lack of Air11 accessories from both ResMed and third parties. Side plate, DC-DC converter, cables. This is going away, but it's been 2.5 years
- Air10 is quieter
- Air11 just doesn't have the long and established, proven history
There appears to be *a lot* of reports of problems with the Air11 heating system (humidifier and hose)
The only real advantages the Air11s have is:
- Bluetooth support, but this has turned out to be useless for the end-user. The supported oxi devices are not for endusers, but instead expensive and targeted as titration devices (proving one again, we are not ResMed's customers)
- OTA upgrades, but then again the Air10 had these too, but ResMed only used it once. When ResMed used the OTA upgrade to add bluetooth oxi support, they took down the ability to send cellular data for most for a almost two months
- They decoupled SmartStart and SmartStop
If you've got an AS10 ( or AC10) and you're due for a new machine, get a new AS10 (or AC10) keep all your existing accessories and spare parts and keep using a solid, reliable workhorse.