Discussion on zenni-optical

[LVWelkin]

I wrote a review of my Zenni experience several weeks ago, but haven't
found it posted. I apologize in advance if this is a duplicate.

I purchased Zenni's 3161 Bendable Titanium frame with 1.67 lenses,
anti-glare coating, and a clip on sunshade in early Nov 2006. I also
requested a yellow tint. It cost a little over $80. Zenni sent me an
email the next day saying that they could not tint a high-index lens,
so I told them to drop the tint then.

To my surprise, Zenni credited my charge card with the $4.95 tint cost
within 2 days! 2-3 days later, Zenni sent me an email that my order
was shipped. It took 5 days to receive my eyeglasses from the date of
the shipping email and about 2 weeks total.

The frames were as I expected and appeared to be very good quality.
The lenses also appeared to be high-index and had the distinctive color
of anti-glare coating. I also received a nice hard frame case and a
Zenni logo lens cloth. Unfortunately, my vision was blurry when I put
the glasses on and my hopes for having found a cheap eyeglass source
were dashed. I contacted Zenni via email and attached a scanned copy
of my prescription. Zenni replied a few hours later stating that I had
entered my prescription incorrectly. Sure enough, I entered +1.00
instead of -1.00. My anger vanished. Zenni said that I could return
my glasses for 50% credit, but I declined. I screwed up, not Zenni.

I ordered another pair of the same glasses and lenses (w/o the tint of
course) using the correct prescription. I once again received timely
emails confirming my order and shipping status. I received my 2nd
order 3-4 days before Christmas. The frames and lenses were perfect!
Actually, the 2nd pair of frames was better than the first (the first
pair had a barely noticeable bend in a metal part of the frame).

I wanted to see if the frame really was bendable titanium so I bent my
first paid--the one with the incorrect lens prescription due to my
error--in all sorts of ways. The frame returned to its original states
for the most part. Thus, the frame seems to be as described.

I was so impressed that I ordered a rimless frame with lenses on
Christmas day. I will post back when they arrive. I am sorry that I
discovered this forum right after spending $500 for some frameless
Silhouette titanium frames with high-index lenses at the local
Myeyedoctor store. I wear my Zenni glasses more than the high-priced
ones.

[Novi]

I ordered rimless glasses from them in april 2007. In my order, I
ordered 1.67 lenses. I got a email saying my Rx wouldn't need this and
suggested 1.61 or 1.57. I explained that when I have bought 1.57 from
local eyeglass stores, I uniformly get a headache. They essentially
replied, "Take 1.57 lenses or leave it (cancel the order). So I took a
flyer on the 1.57 (it had been over 5 years, so maybe it would not
bother me this time with a headache).
The glasses arrive and the headache shows in less than 5 minutes of
wearing them. So I learned my lesson, if they won't give the customer
what he wants, move on. At least the lesson was cheap, the glasses
cost me under $100.

[Kate]

FYI, It's USD$6.95 for shipping to Canada. Not sure about any other
countries; it only gave me the Canadian shipping price on a subsequent
page, after I had entered my address and other information.

[Kate]

[hypatia]

Kate, do they ship USPS to Canada? I've ordered from Zenni before
but had them shipped to a friend in the States; if they use USPS then
duty is usually waaaay less than with UPS :)

Thanks!

[Guillermo Gonzalez]

HI.

I ordered from Argentina. Shipping cost was nine dollars and they shipped through USPS.

GG

 

2007/5/22, Kate <ham...@gmail.com>:

[Kate]

hypatia -- they do ship USPS to Canada. My package is, according to
the tracking number, coming "letter or card" rate. Fingers crossed.

[Dave]

After much research on this and other sites, I decided to take a
chance with Zenni Optical, mainly because they were the cheapest for
my specific needs. In early February 2007, I ordered four pairs, two
bifocals and two monofocals. The order arrived when promised with
good strong frames and plastic cases that have held up well so far. I
am extremely pleased, and wouldn't hesitate to order from them again.

[texasboys]

Yes, I got a pair of glasses from Zenni Optical about two months ago
against better advice but figured I'd try it anyway.

Took them to work and did a magnaflux on the metal frames. Came up
substandard and would not be allowed if they were produced in this
country. It was after that I learned that Zenni just shoots orders to
China where American standards don't apply. We're seeing a lot of
that these days.

A couple weeks later I dropped by and had an Opthamologist check the
lenses against the prescription. They were NOT within tolerance. I
hadn't noticed any special problem but he said our eyes try to
compensate for defects or other disparities in lenses. The lenses do
not meet US standards and will cause eye strain if worn continuously
and more with reading, etc.

So you pay a substandard price and get a substandard product. Any
claims about meeting US standards are false. Called and informed
Zenni Optical and they almost ended up screaming and claiming that
test results were wrong and they were right. I couldn't really place
the accent but they were clearly unwilling to rationally discuss their
product or any problems. They are really nothing more than middlemen
willing to do anything to keep illgotten gains.

[Chris Irving]

I ordered a pair from Zenni about two weeks ago. They came right on
time. Quality is SUPERB and the price ($30) is absolutely PHENOMENAL!
If you don't have some insane prescription that requires extra work
then I suspect you will also have a pleasant experience with Zenni.
They got tons of frames to choose from!

[marlon]

My previous lenses (Definity progressives) cost me $595 back in 2005.
They were the "Cadillac" of progressive lenses, according to the
optician and my optometrist highly recommended them. I only bought
lenses because I really liked my frames. I think I got screwed
pricewise, but, I was extremely happy with the lenses, which were my
first progressives.

Now, 2 years later, my prescription has changed. With my current
insurance at the same optician, a new pair of frames (Modo - listed at
$295) + lenses (Definity progressives) would cost me $536. My
insurance requires me to buy a complete set of eyeglasses. I can't
just replace the lenses.

A friend suggested I buy glasses online to save money. Thanks to
GlassyEyes I found several sites. I decided to try Zenni. I also
want to try Goggles4U and Optical4Less. Some of the other site's
prices start zooming up when I start configuring a pair. Progressive
lenses are expensive. One site doubled the price when it discovered
my "high" prescription. Another site wanted to charge about $40 for
AR coating. That's ridiculous. I've only got a $536 budget to play
with. :)

I decided to start with a pair of single vision distance glasses for
watching TV in bed, something that progressives aren't very good for.
I was a bit leery of trying to get progressive lenses online. I may
have been spoiled by the Definity lenses.

On 7/6/2007, I placed my order for "3821 Light Plastic Frame with a
180 Degree Full Swing Spring-Loaded Hinge" with an extra-strength
prescription (+$9), 1.67 single vision lenses (+$37) w/AR coating. A
few days later the price of the frames dropped from $19 to $8 -- that
sucked. The total, with $4.95 S&H, was $74.90.

They arrived 7/13/2007, via USPS. I unwrapped them and examined them,
immediately noticing a few things. The lenses didn't appear to fit
perfectly in the frames but it seemed good enough. The AR coating was
different between the two lenses (the greenish reflections were
different hues). This didn't affect the vision.

Finally, I noticed that the AR coating was badly scratched on the left
lens, and barely scratched on the right lens. This didn't affect the
vision, either, but I was dissatisfied with the workmanship. After
all, I paid $4.95 for that coating. What's the point of having
scratch resistant lenses if the AR coating is scratched?

On 7/16/2007, I called them up, told them about the problem with the
AR coating, and asked them what they would do about it. They said
send them back for a "redo". I asked them if I was responsible for
shipping them back to Zenni and they noted that it would only cost
less than $3 to send them back and that they wouldn't charge me for
sending the replacements. On 7/17/2007, I put the glasses back in the
container & bubble-envelope they had arrived in, and mailed them back
to Zenni for less than $2. I toyed with the idea of getting delivery
confirmation but the line at the post office was too freaking long.

On 7/31/2007 I received 2 e-mails with a new order showing a
replacement pair costing $49.95, a $49.95 coupon applied, and $0.00
S&H (sorry, but I don't have the code for that coupon). I was pretty
happy at that point as now I had proof they had received the returned
eyeglasses.

On 8/10/2007, I received the replacement pair. I can't find anything
wrong with them. They're perfect for what I bought them for (watching
TV in bed). The case is different than the first shipment. It's a
translucent black plastic case with a magnetic clasp. The glasses
were wrapped in a microfiber cleaning cloth. My impression of the
quality is "You get what you pay for" - mediocre to good, compared to
what I've gotten at the opticians over the years which has generally
been excellent.

My overall rating is 3. The initial workmanship was disappointing,
the turn-around (1 month+) was, too. The customer service was better
than I anticipated. I feel like I've gotten what I've paid for.

Today I placed another order at Zenni, this time for progressives. I
figured I'd give it a shot since the first order worked out OK.
They're gonna be about $20 cheaper than the first pair. My guess is
that they're much less than 1.67 index. I'll probably post another
review in a couple of weeks (assuming no redo).

[abby]

I started with Zenni because out of all the places on the net, I liked
the frame section the most. I was wary of ordering here because of
the low rating and some bad reviews. So I only started with one pair
of glasses. I ordered a 12.95 pair and added a tint. I was
pleasantly surprised when they came in about 2 weeks and they were
perfectly made.
I have since went back and ordered a couple more pairs of glasses and
they came and were great.
I was also wary about the lenses because the bm places always tell me
I need the special ultra thin lenses (4.50- 4.75 with a 0.75-) but
the frames with the regular lenses were super light and didn't look
any thicker than my 300+ super ultra feather lite lenses from
lensecrafters.

[luvastandardbred]

I ordered glasses from Zenni a while back and kept changing my mind
and ordering different frames, etc. Then placed another order and
added the two together so I could get free shipping on the second
pair. The people at Zenni should have lost their temper with me, but
they just kept canceling orders for me and adding photocromatic to one
of the pairs I didn't originally add it to, etc. Anyway, I don't have
the glasses yet, but I was happily surprised because each time I sent
an e-mail re: my order, it was responded to within 24 hours, and they
bent over backwards to help me ultimately get the glasses I wanted.
HOWEVER, I was only able to get through on the phone one time. Their
phone system appears to be fairly antiquated :-) I would give them an
8 out of 10 at this point, tho.

I will follow-up after I actually get the glasses. The second pair I
ordered was a no-line bifocal with photocromatic lenses. I'm very
curious to see how they turn out.

[abby]

The glasses I ordered on the 14th of September came in today, the
frames only needed some minor adjusting and the lensges were spot on.
I am very happy with my glasses. I am ready to order more. :)

[luvastandardbred]

Okay, now I'm fairdly perturbed. It's been a month and it appears
they lost my glasses or sent them to the wrong person. They're
supposed to be sending new pairs via Priority Mail. We'll see. (Oh,
and when the e-mails are asking why something is happening as it
should, the responses from Zenni cease :-P BUT -- I've been able to
get them on the phone twice in a row now. Takes 15 minutes, tho.)

On Sep 26, 11:47 am, luvastandardbred <luvastandardb...@yahoo.com>
wrote:

[Riatch]

I ordered a pair of glasses from Zenni because they had the larger
selection of frames with magenetic, clip-on, polarized sunglasses. I
got progressive lenses with UV, glare and scratch resistant coatings.
I also ordered a second set of the clip-on sunglasses (one for each
vehicle). They came right at two weeks, and I am very happy with
them. I've never had progressive lenses, but adjusted to them in just
a day or so. Love the glasses and really love the price - all for
about $68.00.

[mnscout]

This company has the most ridiculous warranty ever: you must return
the glasses within 4 weeks and they refund you 50% -- even when it's
their fault! But the worst part is: even that insane policy they still
refuse to honor. Here is my story.

Order # 84653
In April I ordered a pair of glasses from Zenni, which stopped working
4-5 months later (lenses got distorted). They refused to repair or
exchange them sighting their ridiculous 4-week policy.

Order # 131459
I ordered 2 more pairs from them last September. First pair arrived
with the wrong prescription, and another one has the lenses all
screwed-up, meaning I have to manually adjust and re-adjust lenses all
the time. Both E-mails I sent to them (within their own timeframe)
remained unanswered, and when I called them 10/17 a guy named Desmond
(called himself a supervisor but refused to give me his last name)
refused to do anything other than replace the first pair of glasses
with wrong prescription, and when I protested, he flat out laughed and
hunged up on me! Please note how they describe the "highest" quality
of their work:

"...we strive to provide a fashionable and stylish product. More
importantly, we feel prescription eyeglasses are a health item
necessity for most wearers, and to that end we take considerable pride
in being able to bring to all a very high quality product of great
durability, safety and comfort at truly reasonable and affordable
prices."

"We take great pride in delivering a quality product at incredibly low
prices. Every prescription order is meticulously checked by certified
technicians for prescription accuracy and optical clarity before
shipment."

"All of our Single Vison,Bi-Focal and progressive bi-focal lenses are
premium quality..."

If they lenses had been "premium quality", and if they had been so
"meticulous" or "accurate" their lenses wouldn't have turned into a
piece of garbage after just several months; they wouldn't have sent me
the wrong glasses, and if they had "taken pride" pride in their work
they wouldn't have ditched their customers and refuse to exchange
their defective products.

Yes, their glasses are cheap, but so is the quality, and when the
problem arises they will leave you hanging. I initiated the dispute
with my CC company, and reported them to BBB and FTC. I'm urging
everyone they've wronged to do the same. Maybe if they start feeling
some heat beneath them, they will decide it's cheaper to change their
ways.

[Doug Herr]

> Order # 84653
> In April I ordered a pair of glasses from Zenni, which stopped working
> 4-5 months later (lenses got distorted). They refused to repair or
> exchange them sighting their ridiculous 4-week policy.

I am new to prescription glasses, so this may be something I am just
not aware of, but how can lenses get distorted?

[eptho...@gmail.com]

Lenses can get distorted if they're bent by the frames, or, most
notoriously, left in hot cars.

I ordered a pair of progressives with memory titanium frames and AR
coating ( http://zennioptical.com/cart/product.php?productid=378&cat=3&page=1#largeimage
) on September 24th. I had a question on the segment height that was
answered promptly and to my satisfaction.

The glasses arrived (no tracking number email) on October 12th. The
lenses are great - the progressive isn't the most modern design, but
is not dissimilar from Lenscrafter's "Featherwates" or Costco's
Essilor Ovation. It's got a relatively long corridor, so you're going
to need taller frames than, say, 39Dollar's Varilux Ellipse lens.
The coatings seem well-applied when examined with polarizers and a
quick glance.

As a note to optical geeks: Zenni always sets the segment height at
40% of the lens height.

The frames arrived with the right hinge not mating properly. The
right temple, when folded, passed completely below both nosepieces, a
bend of about 25 degrees. This made the glasses sit very unevenly
(which is a problem with PALs), and given the hinge design, I was
afraid to bend on them much. I emailed them on arrival, and the reply
was to call during business hours for instructions on how to adjust
the frames. I called Zenni on their 800 number, held for 22 minutes,
and after explaining the problem, the representative said they would
send new frames and a tool for replacing them.

Overall, I have to say I'm 10-out-of-10 satisfied. The communications
have been excellent, and the price could not have been better: a
comparison:

1) LensKrafty - $620 (memory titanium, featherwates lenses, AR
coating)

2) Costco Optical: $240 (memory titanium, Essilor Ovation, AR
coating)

3) Zenni: $68.85

The Zenni hard case with the magnet is very clever.

My only suggestion would be an instruction sheet on how to adjust
them; if they placed a removable dot where the pupil should be, and
gave people a brief lesson in adjusting the height and the pantoscopic
tilt, they could improve customer satisfaction and speed adaptation to
the progressive lenses.

I was worried that these lenses would not be a good choice for someone
new to progressives; they are actually ideal - the peripheral vision
isn't as compromised as I thought it might be. They're also a very
(VERY!) inexpensive way to try PALs.

Eric

[Jennah]

My Zenni story:

Ordered glasses and got order confirmation/receipt from Zenni on 9/28.
No other correspondence.

On 10/22, my glasses came. Basic lenses, just an 80% grey tint.

They look nice. Sit a little crooked and are a bit tight at the
temples, but that can be adjusted. They don't feel too cheap. There is
a sharp bit at the end of one temple piece, but no biggie. Heavy
enough to feel sturdy, but they don't weigh a million pounds.

OK - so I put them on. I can see. BUT, something is odd. I drove to
and from work in them today, and something still just seemed a little
funky. Maybe it's all in my head?

So I go to WalMart and have them check the prescription. I thought it
was wrong at first, but after coming home and checking both my Zenni
receipt and my prescrip from the doc, that's not the problem.

The problem could be:
1. I didn't get anti-reflective coating, and the reflections to take
re-getting used to.
2. The PD could be wrong? Walmart measured it - may have it redone
somewhere else to see if I get the same number.
3. My doc keeps kind of ghetto records and has to offices, and I visit
both. I could have gotten an old prescrip (it's only changed once, and
that was a whiiillle ago), but it seems pretty unlikely. They only
have one version of my records, so the office I went to had it, and
should have had the newest one.
4. I had a question about the 'spl' value on my prescrip that no one
here had an answer to - I entered it as zero bc iIknow that's my good
eye and I have a very small value there (which the other value for
that eye covered).

So - I want to order another non-sun pair, but unsure of what to do.
Maybe it's all in my head? Who knows. Anyone had a similar is-it-right-
or-not experience? For pics and another version of the review:

<a href=http://blog.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog&pop=1>blog
(on myspace, sorry)</a>

[Joe]

USER: "texasboys" must work in the business and be threatened by
Zenni. You are so fullofit.

I've ordered 11 pairs of glasses from Zenni for myself and family
members. After reading your post I took all the glasses to my 3rd
cousin who is an optician for one of the Mall Chains. After store
hours we tested the optics on all the glasses, and they were well
within specs, and as good or better than everything they sold. (They
get their lenses from China, and many of their frames)

Zenni Optical operates in California, and has the appropriate
licenses. If their glasses were substandard, the state would have
shut them down long ago. I'm sure many people (like you) drunk by the
outlandish profits they have been receiving by ripping off the public
for overpriced glasses, have filed plenty of phony complaints, like
this one.

[Wiz]

Checking in with my latest purchase from Zenni. This is my second
purchase from them, the first being single vision distance sunglasses
that I bought earlier this year, and was very pleased with..

The glasses were ordered thusly:
3131 Bendable (Memory) Titanium Frame.
Anti Reflection Coating
Amber - 10%
Progressive(No-Line Multi-Focal) lenses
$73.80 with shipping

I placed my order on 10/3/07, and received the specs on 10/13/07 - not
bad considering I live on the upper right hand corner of the US.

The glasses arrived in standard Zenni style - hard plastic case and
cleaning cloth in a padded tyvek envelope. Comparing them to my first
Zenni purchase, it looks like the process is becoming more automated
over time.

I put the glasses on and wasn't thrilled with them immediately. This
is a new prescription for me and they're somewhat stronger than the
old RX.

I've been wearing the glasses for two weeks now, and have really grown
to like them. As ethompson noted above, Zenni always sets the segment
height at 40% of the lens height on progressives. My local optician
spent a lot of time on my first pair of progressives getting the
corridor just perfect, so there is a trade-off here.

The Zennis are half-frames, which makes them surprisingly lighter than
my old glasses. Additionally, they look better in real life than on
the website.

At $400 less than the local glasses, the Zennis exceed my expectations.

[eptho...@gmail.com]

Wiz:

Do you notice more "swim" with the Zenni progressive? IE, distortion
in things in your periphery at about 3-5 feet away?

Eric

[mnscout]

I for one, have been very unhappy with Zenni, especially with their
refusal to do anything to replace their defective merchandise. You've
been happy with your 11 pairs? Good for you, because I've ordered only
three pairs from them and got screwed on each and every one of them.
Please stay assured that I am not in 'glasses' business and don't care
how well (or not well) Zenni fares. I'm glad you're happy with your
glasses, just please do not authomatically assume that everyone who
criticize your favorite merchant is a crook. On another note, your
assumption that "If their glasses were substandard, the state would
have shut them down long ago' is incredibly naive. No offence.

[hay...@gmail.com]

Hi,

Thanks for taking time time to really check out the quality of the
lens. I bought 3 pair and have not had a problem its nice to hear
about the licenses are up to date.

Thanks again !!! Go Red Sox !!!

On Oct 25, 5:53 pm, Joe <2008...@gmail.com> wrote:

[Joe]

I wasn't responding to your Oct-17 post, I was responding to texeaboys
post of Jun-22.

The optical industry has been wrought with crooks and corruption for
100 years, 60 minutes did an exposé back in the 70's years prior to
that a law requiring eye Dr's to give you a written prescription was
passed in response to abuses.

But in response to your Oct-22 post, which I see you also posted on
"rip off report" using a different name, but the same order #'s The
conclusion there was is that you are one of "those" customers. Here's
the itemized rebuttal someone posted there.

1)'stopped working 4-5 months later' How can glasses 'stop working'
this is a ridiculous comment. The warranty is stated as 4 weeks, thats
fine with me, if you wanted a longer warranty, go to a mall store and
pay $200 and get a lifetime warranty. For $8 a pair you just don't get
that. Don't demand something (warranty) you did not buy!

2) 'all screwed-up, meaning I have to manually adjust and re-adjust
lenses' How does one adjust an eyeglass lense??? Eyeglasses are all
fixed and are not adjustable.

3)'wrong prescription' Maybe you entered it wrong, anyway they agreed
to replace it at no cost. A friend of mine did exactly that, and they
did indeed replace them for free.

4)'laughed and hunged up on me' You probably deserved it, harassing
some poor guy making $9/hr is out of line. He already agreed to
replace them for free, why protest.

Everyone in retail knows that Irrational, demanding, pain in the neck,
customers drive up costs for everyone. Those mall stores charge $200
so they can deal with difficult customers and still make money. But we
reasonable customers have to pay the same high price. Zenni is cutting
us a break, we'll shop there, the difficult customers should go to the
mall.

Recommended Solution: YOU SHOULD BUY YOUR GLASSES at a mall Store for
$200.

[Wiz]

No, I don't notice swim, but they really don't seem terribly good at
reading distance.

On Oct 26, 3:47 pm, "epthomp...@gmail.com" <epthomp...@gmail.com>
wrote:

[Jennah]

Per my other message, I believe it was all in my head. I always have
an adjustment period getting used to the new peripheral etc (which was
a bit more odd bc these sunglasses were white). They seem to be fine
now. I was able to very careful adjust the frames so they sit more
square on my face, also. I think I will def order from them again! The
only real drawback was that it took a long time (3 weeks I think?) for
delivery. Other than that, totally usable perscrip sunglasses for $25?
Can't complain!

[mnscout]

On Oct 29, 12:24 pm, Joe <2008...@gmail.com> wrote:
> I wasn't responding to your Oct-17 post, I was responding to texeaboys
> post of Jun-22.
>
> The optical industry has been wrought with crooks and corruption for
> 100 years, 60 minutes did an exposé back in the 70's years prior to
> that a law requiring eye Dr's to give you a written prescription was
> passed in response to abuses.

So what? What kind of logic is that? I agree: there are plenty of
crooks among conventional optic stores, but what exactly does it
prove?

> But in response to your Oct-22 post, which I see you also posted on
> "rip off report" using a different name, but the same order #'s The
> conclusion there was is that you are one of "those" customers. Here's
> the itemized rebuttal someone posted there.
>
> 1)'stopped working 4-5 months later' How can glasses 'stop working'
> this is a ridiculous comment. The warranty is stated as 4 weeks, thats
> fine with me, if you wanted a longer warranty, go to a mall store and
> pay $200 and get a lifetime warranty. For $8 a pair you just don't get
> that. Don't demand something (warranty) you did not buy!

Here is an itmeized rebuttal for you point 1.

a) I'm glad you find my comment ridiculous, but they DID stop working.
The surface of the lenses got all "wavey" (sorry, cannot find a better
term to explain). This defect alone rendered the glasses unusable.
Since I posted this info, I learned that those "waves" on the lense
surface may have been caused by inadequate application of coating.
Whether that was the cause or not, I have no idea! All I know, it was
not very funny to me.

b) Their warranty is 2 weeks, not 4, which is ridiculous enough (but
they refused to honor even that 'warranty').

c) I did not pay $8 for those glasses. With all the options, I paid
close to $90 which I believe is too high of a sticker for the product
I was only able to use for a few months. If you had actually read my
Rip Off report you would've known that.

d) On a personal note, please do NOT tell me where to go and what to
buy. I'm perfectly capable of making that kind of decisions on my own,
thank you very much!

>
> 2) 'all screwed-up, meaning I have to manually adjust and re-adjust
> lenses' How does one adjust an eyeglass lense??? Eyeglasses are all
> fixed and are not adjustable.

Let me tell you how one 'manually' adjusts crooked frames. When Zenny
screws up the prescription, one goes to the optical store. If the
optician is kind enough, he will warm up the frame a little and then
moves one of the lenses just a tiny little bit so one could actually
use the glasses he had paid for. Of course it works for just a couple
of weeks or so, then one has to... yeah, you guessed it right, re-
adjust again, and again and again.

>
> 3)'wrong prescription' Maybe you entered it wrong, anyway they agreed
> to replace it at no cost. A friend of mine did exactly that, and they
> did indeed replace them for free.

a) Of course, it was I who entered it wrong. Zenny just couldn't be
wrong, could they? Funny, how another pair of glasses I ordered at the
same exact time, came with the correct prescription (albeit crooked
lenses).

b) They agreed to replace the one with the wrong prescription. They
did NOT agree to do anything about the one with crooked lenses even
though I contacted them within their 2-week policy.

>
> 4)'laughed and hunged up on me' You probably deserved it, harassing
> some poor guy making $9/hr is out of line. He already agreed to
> replace them for free, why protest.

a) Of course, I deserved it. Totally, dude! It's perfectly normal when
a poor guy laughs at the customer and hangs up the phone because he
doesn't enjoy the conversation. Of course, this 'poor' guy claimed to
be a supervisor, but so what? Of course, he has the right to refuse to
tell the customer his last name, but that's totally his prerogative,
too. And of course, there is nothing wrong with the fact that a poor,
harrassed, $9 an hour supervisor refuses to honor their own, once
again, ridiculous policy!

b) Why protest? So, if you buy, say, two cameras from the same
merchant, and they both brake down DURING the warranty period and the
merchant agrees to repair only one of them - I understand that WOULD
make you happy. Right?

> Everyone in retail knows that Irrational, demanding, pain in the neck,
> customers drive up costs for everyone. Those mall stores charge $200
> so they can deal with difficult customers and still make money. But we
> reasonable customers have to pay the same high price. Zenni is cutting
> us a break, we'll shop there, the difficult customers should go to the
> mall.
>
> Recommended Solution: YOU SHOULD BUY YOUR GLASSES at a mall Store for
> $200.

Yeah, your superb knowledge of retail industry is amptly hightened by
your undying believe that California would surely shut them down if
they sold substandard glasses. Sure, the states are extremely
efficient in that respect. I know another supplyer California was
happy with for a number of years. Formerly known as Enron.

I agree, though, it's all the goddamn customers! If "difficult"
customers didn't create problems for poor merchants we would live in
Paradize on earth! Recommended solution: SCREEN ALL YOUR CUSTOMERS AND
MAKE SURE NO UNSATISFIED CUSTOMER WILL EVER VOICE HIS (HER) OPINION.
NEVER!

For the record: nope, I am not buying glasses from the mall. Like,
most people here I'm hopelessly spoiled. I'm willing to try some other
internet suppliers, and this is the reason why I read other people
opinions and post my own: to share information. A couple of years ago
I bought a few glasses from Goggles4u. While I was unhappy with some
of their glasses, they ALWAYS honestly tried to resolve the problem,
so I'm gonna give them another chance now. My major problem with Zenny
is their arrogance and stubborn refusal to fix their own screw-ups.

What I honestly don't understand is: why some Zenny customers have to
be so militant and go ballistic every time somebody - God forbid -
dares to post a dissenting opinion. My problem with your particular
post was that you accused the guy who had posted his own experience
before of being a spy for the industry, no less! Following your logic
- how do we know you are not a shill for Zenny? And why not? Using
that sort of marketing technic wouldn't be beneath them.

> > > this one.- Hide quoted text -
>
> - Show quoted text -

[Joe]

I was simply quoting someone else who rebutted your ridiculous post on
another site.

You cannot possibly get the kind of service you demand on-line. That
Optician wasn't there to help you, he acted to help himself and
convince you that on-line products are bad.

Besides if your going to that optician for free repairs you should be
doing your business there, he obviously knows how to 'handle' you. It
just irritates me when irrational, demanding, dimwitted customers

drive up costs for everyone.

p.s. You went to a $8 site, and end up paying $90?????????
p.p.s Enron is a TEXAS company, no a Calif one, and they did get
caught.

[didgidude]

I have never had a pair of progressives, but decided that Zenni's
prices make it reasonable to buy a trial pair. I ordered them in
bendable titanium frames and they arrived only 11 days later. I'm
very pleased with the workmanship of the frames and lenses as well as
the price. I find them a bit odd, compared to the simple bifocals to
which I am accustomed, but I'll allow myself a fair 2 weeks or so to
accommodate to them. If I don't like them after that, I'm sure it
will be a matter of personal preference rather than the way they are
made. In that case, I'll gladly pay Zenni to make me ordinary bifocal
lenses.

[KayakerNC]

Don't feed the trolls.

On Nov 7, 8:58 am, Joe <2008...@gmail.com> wrote:
> I was simply quoting someone else who rebutted your ridiculous post on
> another site.
>

> not possibly get the kind of service you demand on-line. ThatYou can

[coffee]

> b) Why protest? So, if you buy, say, two cameras from the same
> merchant, and they both brake down DURING the warranty period and the
> merchant agrees to repair only one of them - I understand that WOULD
> make you happy. Right?

Actually I know a guy that had paid ~$10,000 for an air compressor.
It had a 1 year warranty and kept breaking every week or so. After 6
months, he got fed up and asked his money back or a replacement. The
company told the guy that it was too costly to fix again and to claim
it under their insurance (the owner of the company claimed that he had
X number of kids to feed and he was going broke from this
transaction). End of story, customers are at the mercy of the
supplier if they are not willing to stand up and fight.

Now given that the amount to of consideration is $90 dollars and the
supplier is not even in your own country (which makes legal
enforcement hard to apply), I would recommend to suck it up, don't buy
any more from that supplier and let others know it is buyer beware for
this supplier (which sounds like this is what you are doing, so thank
you).

What I have READ is that Zenni-optical is either it's a hit or a miss,
so if you order, be ready to have a messed up order but hope for a
good pair.

Since I have ordered a set of glasses on Monday from them along with
other supplier knowing it could be money down the drain or the best
sets ever I will make my own judgment. Granted I believe some
supplier quality control may be lacking while other are more geared to
better quality control. The end result is I get the feeling it's more
dependent on the prescription than anything. It sounds like some
supplier are good for certain range or type, but can't hack another.
This is either weird, way off, or on the money (which would be
scary).

Another thing I noticed is that certain type of lens are good for only
a certain range. This may sound stupid, but the lens you ordered may
have been to weak to go to -6, but Zenni should have let you know
this..... Then again I have only come across this info on one or two
sites and Zenni pushes the cheapest lens when the range is low, so
they should have let you know.

Just remember the best asset a customer has for online retailers is
the internet and the willingness to buy from that supplier again. If
you make it sound like fixing your order won't make you a happy
customer, then they will not have much incentive to make you happy,
however if you are receptive, then they may be more willing. Then
again the fact you called them makes it hard to ever make you happy
and less likely to reorder from them again.

Good luck and thank you for the info, hopefully my set won't be messed
up.

Cheers!

[Joe]

Well anyone who works in retail knows that you occasionally run into
"one of those" customers.
Very demanding and irrational, and need to be carefully 'handled'. So
companies cater to these customers (Nordstrom's for example) and
charge high prices to permit that. But the high prices are charged to
everyone, not just the difficult customers.

The low end (inexpensive) on-line suppliers have virtually no customer
service, and I think thats great, because I don't use customer service
and I don't like paying for something I don't use. I make sure my
order is correct, don't order anything that is to complex or possibly
confusing.

[sg]

Well said. Using the same stragtegy, I now have three pairs of
glasses from Zenni for ~$145 (which included shipping). All arrived
in 12 days or less, and the lenses were validated at an HMO optician
as perfectly matching the prescription (the last $400 pair from a mall
shop were off in multiple ways, even after the shop swore that they
checked out to the prescription--you DON'T necessarily get what you
pay for).

At the moment, only Optical4Less even offers comparable frames
(hingeless/rimless). $51 for stainless steel is twice what Zenni
charges (they don't offer titanium), and then there would have been
$59 on top of that for the "strong" prescription (greater than +-2.5
sphere). The most expensive pair I have was less than the O4L
additional charge, and came with titanium frames and tinting.

It's only another data point and I know that others have reported
negative experiances, but at 3 for 3, I'll stick with Zenni and
recommend them.

> > Cheers!- Hide quoted text -

[ejd...@gmail.com]

I recently place my first online order for glasses - I chose Zenni
figuring they were the cheapest place to experiment with. I got
readers for over my contacts, and a pair of 'computer' glasses for
work.

I entered the prescription as I thought I was supposed to - I did a
bit of research to make sure how to record the + for my computer
glasses . . . thought I had it figured out . . . until I got a call
from Zennis. The woman was downright evil, telling me repeatedly that
what I had entered for my prescription was garbage. Whoa! Everything
I have read states that if the plus value is for each eye - not that
you are supposed to halve it then add to each eye.

So . . . it was an interaction that made me hate people just a little
more . . . but the glasses are great! Much better quality than I am
used to, although I always get the cheapest possible (my prescription
changes every 8 months).

Can't beat 2 pair of glasses w/ AR coating for $28 delivered!

[Brandon]

I ordered from Zenni roughly 8 - 10 months ago. As others have
mentioned I placed my order wrong. I added a feature to a particular
lens that wouldn't work together so they notified me and credited my
card back the amount. I was very pleased that they took care of it so
well instead of just taking the money and not telling me about the
problem. I received my order about 5 or 6 days later and I was very
pleased with their service. I received the glasses, a hardcase, and a
Zenni Optical logo cleaning cloth. The glasses were very strong and
exactly what I had ordered, no problems at all. They worked great
until I accidently broke them just the other day. They were rimless
and the plastic lens broke right in half when I accidently put too
much pressure on them. My fault, but there was nothing wrong with the
glasses or the service, A+ in my experience. I plan on ordering from
them very soon so hopefully it will be the same.

[ZB]

I needed new glasses with a new prescription, and first went to a big-
name boutique. The optician giving my exam seemed disinterested, and
her voice became sing-song during part of it. I ordered an expensive
pair of glasses with many fine options, and it arrived in about a week
and a half. The lower lens on one side just didn't work, no matter
how adjusted. I returned the glasses for a full refund, and
retreated.
Now, my Rx is for strong (-5+) near-sighted, warped with astigmatism,
and since I can only change my focus within a narrow range, preferably
bifocal.
I got another exam from another optician. I was not eager to spend
much on another pair of glasses until the correctness of the Rx was
verified, so Zenni was my choice.
My order was processed promptly, shipped from a lab in China 24DEC,
and arrived 31DEC in good order. I don't recommend the design of clip-
on sunglasses, since they depend on a padded leg clamping onto the
lens surface, rather than the rim.
My new glasses work fairly well, for a tenth of the price.

[EricSEA]

Well, the honeymoon is over. The second pair of Zenni 3125 frames has
failed in the exact same spot (where the rim attaches to the bridge).
On average, this is a new pair of frames every six weeks. Granted, I
can keep ordering new frames for these same lenses every two months
for the life of the lenses and never exceed the cost of a single pair
from the mall, but the convenience factor is quite low. Additionally,
I've been unable to contact Zenni customer service today.

E

[Chuck]

Can you not have it repaired, locally? I mean, I understand that this
is ridiculous for you...but why not just have your frames spot welded
back together at a local jeweler?

One of my friends is a jeweler, has a LASER welder in his shop, and a
decent percentage of his business is repairing eyeglass frames. In
fact, most are broken in *exactly* the same way yours are...where the
rim joins the bridge. Takes him about 10 seconds to fix it...charges
no more than a couple of dollars. He's the only one around who can
weld titanium or stainless steel, and he's a perfectionist.

A question, especially if the break happened in the same spot on
multiple pairs. Are you doing anything unusual to them? I mean, I
could see 2 frames breaking...but in random locations. 2 frames
breaking in the same spot, in the same way implies that something else
is going on...something external. Are your glasses tight on your
head, perhaps?

-- Chuck Knight

[EricSEA]

No. These are bendy frames, and they're breaking where there's a
large decorative element on the bridge-lens interface. I'm inclined to
believe that this is a design or manufacturing flaw, given that I've
worn memory metal frames since the era when you had to rinse them in
boiling water to reset them, and I've never broken a pair in less than
three years of wear. I'm not playin' rugby in them. This pair broke
while drying them off after washing, the previous pair broke in the
case.

The local jeweler charges $35 to weld glasses, whereas a new pair from
Zenni is $15 (I order them with single-vision lenses no AR coating,
figuring if I break a lens, I'll cope with single-vision in that eye).

I'm not suggesting that all Zenni options are crap; I'm suggesting
that the 3125 frame in silver is a poor choice for someone who needs
modestly rugged glasses, contrary to their description, "A medium-
large rectangular, medium weight, extremely durable full-rim frame
which retains its shape well". Extremely durable != six weeks.

E

[Fred Di]

I have several pairs of Zenni glasses.

I like the 4108 frames the best they are very durable and well made.
They are similar in design to your 3125, but not titanium, and only
$8.

[clocks]

I emailed Zenni about what index lenses they felt I needed for some
frames I like, providing them with my Rx. They replied with the
following:

"We do not use the 1.61 index lens until the Spherical or Cylinder
readings are greater than +/- 5.00; and the 1.67 is not used until the
respective correction exceeds +/- 7.00."

So I called them to make sure that is correct, which they confirmed.
So told them about my recent order (couples weeks ago), and since they
used 1.57 index on my glasses if they would refund the $37 I paid for
1.67 index lenses. They said they would not. I then asked if I could
get a credit for a future purchase which they also said no also.

Is it just me, or is that really crappy? Nowhere on there site do they
say if you Rx is under -5 that they will not use high index lenses. I
feel I am due a refund for the cost of the high index upgrade ($37)
since that is not what they provided me.

[Infraredhead]

Ordered two pair of glasses on January 13th and they arrived in Texas
on January 28th. I was pleased with the workmanship and how fast they
responded to my emails concerning the shipment of my glasses. I can't
believe I only paid 20 bucks for a pair of prescription sunglasses!
(I have a somewhat simple single vision prescription so your order may
be more expensive). I have been wearing the same pair of sunglasses
for years with scratchy lenses and part of the frame has been super
glued too many times to count. The last time I bought sunglasses I
paid around 250 dollars at Lens Crafters therefore I had no dinero in
the budget for another until now. I'm a happy girl. Hooray for this
web site.

[sj]

I got my Zenni glasses 2 days ago and I'm very pleased with how they
turned out. They arrived 11 days after placing the order.

I ordered 3 pairs, 2 of the $8 glasses and one $15.95, no upgrades,
just the basic lenses, so the total cost for 3 pair was just under
$36. I wear monovision glasses instead of bifocals (one eye corrected
for distance and the other corrected for near vision). I needed to
replace some beat up frames and I wanted to try slightly different
monovision configuarations.

I'm most impressed with how thin these lenses are. They are slightly
thinner than the same prescription I got from Zenni 2 years ago. (I
wonder if they've upgrade their basic lens material since then?)
They're about as thin as the super expensive thin lenses I got locally
about 5 or 6 years ago. The prescription seems to be right on.

The frames are nice too. All 3 have the thin, flexible stainless steel
temples which are comfortable to wear. I like the $8 #4100 the best
of the three, it's very thin and elegant looking with an attractive
finish and plastic coated temples, very lightweight. The only flaw I
can find is a slight gap in the lens mounting joint on one side.

The $16 #4183 is also very nice, maybe a couple of grams heavier. I
can not fault the finish or workmanship at all. Both of these frames
have soft flexible nose pads and spring loaded hinges.

The other pair isn't as impressive, no spring loaded hinges, stiff
nose pads and a bit heavier look and feel. Still, a nice looking
frame.

I've been wearing glasses for over 40 years and I suppose I've come to
be a bit picky about my glasses. I'd gladly buy the 4100 or 4183
frame again. I'm also pretty rough on glasses, sometimes falling
asleep in them or on them and just generally abusing them. The next
test is how well these hold up over time.

[Mitch1975]

I was strapped for cash and could not afford to spend $3-400 on
glasses so I thought I would take my chances and order them off Zenni
optical. I figured for $50 dollars for 2 pairs with one having scratch
resistant in one, and tinting in the other, was a steal and If the
prescription was crappy when I got them I would just take them to an
optical store and have lenses put in them because the frames alone
were well worth the price. I recieved them today and I'm extremely
surprised and happy with them. The one pair does not sit on my nose
perfectly but I figured I was being picky because couldnt find
anything else wrong with them. My sister inlaw works in a eye doctors
office so she said she would adjust them but even if she didnt they
still fit ok. I definitely will order from them again.
Bottom line is their dirt cheap. If you paid only $20 for them and
their not perfect then suck it up. Dont expect to get $300 quality
when you paid practically nothing for them. The same people who kick a
stink because their $15 were not top quality are probably the same
people that go into a dollar store, pay a $1 for an item and expect it
to last for ever and then try to return that item to the store when it
breaks and demand their big $1 back.

[Pau...@yahoo.com]

Does anyone know if they do gradient tints? It doesn't really mention
it on the website. I sent them an e-mail a couple of days ago, but
I've yet to hear back from them.

Thanks!

[courtn...@gmail.com]

@ Mitch1975

These online optical stores state clearly that they are offering a
quality product at a fraction of the cost. I therefore expect a
quality product, even if I am only paying $8 for a pair of glasses.
The whole point is that prescription eyeglasses are so cheap to make
to begin with that even these stores like Zenni make a profit off of
their $8 glasses. I think a lot of people on this board bring these
online retail stores to task when the product they receive is not up
to par and I agree with this. Twenty bucks may seem like a small sum
for a pair of glasses but they better be the quality I expect or I
will return them, otherwise what is the point of buying glasses
online?

[Charles Knight]

Agreed, but let me point out that with a price of only $8, or even $20, it's likely that you'll be willing to tolerate a little imperfection in exchange for the low price.  Let me explain.

When my glasses arrived, they were wire semi-rimless with a plastic part over the ear.  This was obviously molded on, because there was a slight (and I do mean very slight) rough spot from the mold.  Had I paid $400 for them, I'd have been irate.  Incensed, in fact.  Since I paid $13 ($8 + $5 coating) I just took a fingernail file, smoothed it off, and was done.  It's never been an issue...even before I smoothed it out.

Like I said...for a high price, I want it PERFECT.  I'm willing to tolerate some extremely slight imperfection, for the cheap price...but would prefer not to.

     -- Chuck Knight

[courtn...@gmail.com]

I agree with you there Chuck. I was also venting about the frustration
of waiting for a new pair of glasses and them arriving imperfect. I
posted this under the Goggles4u section but I will post it here as
well. The other day I received a pair of rimless glasses and the nose
piece was bent pretty badly (as with the last pair I ordered) I was
annoyed but I was able to bend the last pair back in shape, but when I
went to do it to this pair the nose piece snapped off (I guess these
are more fragile because they are rimless) and after wearing them for
only a day and a half they became wobbly where the screws sit in the
lens. This is upsetting not just for the waste of $23 but because I
waited over two weeks to get them. I haven't had any problems with
Zenni or LBW eyewear (my favorite online retailer due to high quality
and quick shipping, only seven days!) I think I will just stick to
these guys.

On Feb 22, 11:10 am, "Charles Knight" <chuckkni...@gmail.com> wrote:
> Agreed, but let me point out that with a price of only $8, or even $20, it's
> likely that you'll be willing to tolerate a little imperfection in exchange
> for the low price.  Let me explain.
>
> When my glasses arrived, they were wire semi-rimless with a plastic part
> over the ear.  This was obviously molded on, because there was a slight (and
> I do mean very slight) rough spot from the mold.  Had I paid $400 for them,
> I'd have been irate.  Incensed, in fact.  Since I paid $13 ($8 + $5 coating)
> I just took a fingernail file, smoothed it off, and was done.  It's never
> been an issue...even before I smoothed it out.
>
> Like I said...for a high price, I want it PERFECT.  I'm willing to tolerate
> some extremely slight imperfection, for the cheap price...but would prefer
> not to.
>
>      -- Chuck Knight
>

> On Fri, Feb 22, 2008 at 3:06 AM, courtneyw...@gmail.com <

[Chuck]

Have you told Zenni about this? The reason I ask, is that their
customer service seems to be quite responsive, when I call...others
have had mixed results. But, 1.5 days after receipt, I wouldn't
expect the lenses and frames to have loosened significantly, even if
there was a flaw in them.

Do you have the ones with the nut and bolt, or the newer model with
the self tapping screw? As a self-fix...a tiny bit of loctite, or
super-glue or nail polish on the nut should secure them very nicely.
But, before you even touch them...to me it sounds like there's a
genuine problem with the frames. I've heard tale of Zenni sending out
frame pieces, and even tools to people who received damaged
frames...it's worth giving them a chance to make it right for you.

-- Chuck Knight


On Feb 22, 1:51 pm, "courtneyw...@gmail.com" <courtneyw...@gmail.com>
wrote:

[Fred Di]

"Quality Product" does not mean the best in the world even for the
most demanding customer.

Highly demanding customers shouldn't buy on-line.

If your not willing to make minor adjustments your self, or if you are
hyper concerned about the color or style then on-line is not for you.

Wal Mart claims to sell quality products, but someone who's used to
buying a Nordstroms, with all the hand holding by thier excellent (and
well paid) sales staff, isn't going to be happy at Wal-Mart.



On Feb 22, 1:06 am, "courtneyw...@gmail.com" <courtneyw...@gmail.com>
wrote:

[courtn...@gmail.com]

lol @ Fred Di

I am hardly a demanding customer. The glasses are sitting in my
drawer broken. I did not call the company and expect a refund. Also, I
am completely willing to make minor adjustments myself but the glasses
were so flimsy they broke. Lastly, I wouldn't compare my online
eyeglass purchases to Walmart because my eyes mean more to me than
that. If they are going to charge $25 for a pair of "quality" glasses
than that is what I expect. Keep in mind they are still making a
profit at these low prices, since all of us on this board now know how
much it costs to make a pair of prescription glasses. Fred, this is
not the first time you have said "highly demanding customers shouldn't
buy on-line" maybe you should stop judging people you don't know, just
a suggestion.

[Chuck]

I did not mean that you should request a refund from Zenni. Quite the
opposite, in fact...your glasses arrived, but damaged. They are not
usable. While I admit that this should definitely qualify for a full
refund or a remake my point was that Zenni, in the past, has been
known to send out frame parts for rimless glasses, along with a tool
for their installation. It's the most expedient way for them to "make
it right."

When I pay for glasses, I expect them to be usable, barring a mistake
of my own making. Putting the discussion of quality aside, the bottom
line is that they shouldn't have arrived damaged. Good, bad, or
otherwise, there is an assumption that they will at least be usable,
on arrival.

If it were me, I would give Zenni a chance to make things right.

-- Chuck Knight


On Feb 23, 11:15 pm, "courtneyw...@gmail.com" <courtneyw...@gmail.com>
wrote:

[Fred Di]

I'm sorry, I had you mixed up with someone else.

You should clarify, that, per your previous post, your problem glasses
were from goggles4u not zenni. And after reading that post I agree
you should return them to Goggles4U.

But "quality" glasses does not mean absolute perfection and someone to
gently stroke your hand through the entire process, which some other
posters seem to want. But quality does mean they shouldn't fall apart
after making a normal minor adjustment like your goggles4u pair did.


On Feb 23, 9:15 pm, "courtneyw...@gmail.com" <courtneyw...@gmail.com>
wrote:

> > > online?- Hide quoted text -

[Andy]

I recently placed my first online glasses order with Zenni. I checked
out the different sites and Zenni had the best combination of prices/
styles for my needs. I thought Zenni's site was pretty easy to
navigate and narrow down to the styles I might be interested in, with
good pictures and detailed info. I actually wear contacts most of
the time, but with the low online prices I ended up ordering four
pairs.

I chose to get three pairs of half-rim styles, one fairly rectangular
(#3996), one more rounded (#4632), and one in-between (#3904). I also
bought a rectangular plastic full-frame pair (#2208). My prescription
is around -7 on both eyes and I went with the 1.61 index on the two
wider half-rim styles, and I got the AR coating on all four pairs.
The order total was a shade over $100 (laughably low).

I placed the order on 2/3 and received it on 2/21, about when I
expected. As soon as I opened the package I could already tell that
trying an online order was a good idea. Since I am a casual wearer I
have always gotten (relatively) cheap frames from nearby B&M stores
and I could immediately see that these were of higher quality than
many pairs I've had in the past which have never been durable. None
of the Zenni frames or lenses had any scratches or build quality
issues that I could find. The lenses in the half rim styles were all
seated properly which I had been concerned about.
Importantly, all of them looked very much like I expected them to from
the pictures on Zenni's site. The only minor difference was that the
3904 in gray was shiny when I thought it would be more of a matte
gray, which wasn't a huge deal. I am glad I went with the 1.61 index
lenses on the two wide rectangular half-rim styles; with a -7
prescription a certain level of thickness is expected but I am glad
they are not any thicker.

Trying them on, the frames all fit surprisingly well. I had measured
previous frames pretty carefully and thankfully I seem to have done a
good job picking out frames to fit my bridge and temples. The
prescriptions all seem spot-on.

The bottom line is that I was extremely happy with my purchase. I
would definitely order from them again. Thanks to GlassyEyes for
providing a great source of information on the process.

[JameyWilson]

I just got my first 2 pairs of glasses in from Zenni. This is a new
prescription, so I thought it might take a little while to get used
to. I can definately see clearer with them, but they are also making
me sick and dizzy. I notice that they distort at the edges in my
peripheral vision. My old glasses were the same no matter where I
looked through them. The lenses on these are a lot ticker than my
previous glasses, could that be the problem? I have another pair
coming from goggles4u, so I will be able to compare the 2
prescriptions when they get here. I'll post the results at that time.
As for the time being, I've gone back to my old glasses.

[Fred Di]

How much did you perscription change? (The stronger the perscription,
the thicker the lense)

Are the new glasses progressives? (Progressives sometimes have more
distortion around the edge)

What styles did you order? (Larger lenses result in exponentially
thicker lenses)

[JameyWilson]

The prescription is pretty weak. Around -2.0. My brother is
experiencing the same problem and his is even weaker, around -1.75. My
old prescription is a -1.75 and they are perfect. They are not
progressive and I ordered a many different sized frames.The lenses I
ordered were the 1.57 mid index single vision. I just received the new
2 pairs in today and I'm having the same problem. It must be the
cheap lenses. I now have 4 pair of glasses that I cannot wear without
getting dizzy.

[JameyWilson]

My prescription went from a -2.0 to a -2.25. My brother also ordered a
pair and his prescription is the same as my old prescription. His new
glasses make me dizzy too. It must be the cheap lenses. I wear my
glasses all the time so this is a big problem. I have 4 pair of
glasses that I can't wear. They are not progressive and i ordered a
diverse sized group of fames.

[powrwrap]

To clarify--are you saying that your brother, whose prescription is
-1.75 can see out of your old glasses (also a -1.75) but gets dizzy
looking through the new glasses (also -1.75)?

Check your receipt. Compare the prescription printed on the receipt to
your new prescription to be sure they are the same. If they match your
next step would be to take the glasses into a optometrist and have
them check your glasses on a lensometer. This will tell you the actual
data on the lens you've received.

Keep us posted.

[Chuck]

Have you had the prescription lenses checked for accuracy at a local
dispensary?

I use Zenni glasses, as do a number of people in my church, and our
lenses work just perfect. I had mine checked, independently, and they
match up with my written prescription precisely. I see out of them,
too.

On my lenses, there is no distortion, no waviness, no anything. Just
clear vision. I suspect something is wrong...seriously wrong. Zenni
is many things, but their lenses (barring a total screw up) tend to
match the prescription, perfectly. Lots of reviewers have said this.

-- Chuck Knight

[Ira Mitchell]

Yeah, I'm curious about this too. I haven't really heard of too many
people questioning prescriptions unless they were waaaaaay off. My
moderate single-vision prescription has been fine on glasses from all
of the reviewed vendors -- including Zenni.

I think powrwrap has the right idea -- or maybe the optometrist (or
you) forgot to add the "axis" properly?

I got one pair of sunglasses that had this problem.

Please let us know what you find out.

- Ira

[sj]

I wear a considerably stronger prescription than you do, around -4.5.
I've worn glasses for many, many years and Zenni's lenses seem to be
quite nice quality compared to glasses I've had in the past. (nothing
fancy, just plain single vision)

I would suggest you take the glasses in to wherever you got the
prescription and have them checked to see if they match what was
prescribed.

Also, how did you get the PD measurement? I imagine that if the PD was
way off if could cause problems.

On Mar 5, 10:03 am, JameyWilson <jameywil...@gmail.com> wrote:

[Fred Di]

It must be an error of some sort. I have 11 pairs of Zenni glasses
and all of them are fine. I have recoemenede them to many friends and
everyone is very pelased. I have had mice checked by a cousin that is
an optician, and he confirmened that the lenses meet US pecs.

The lenses are made by the same chinese manufacturer that supplies
Lens Shafters and other big chains.

There's not much the optician can do wrong except put in the wrong
lenses. Though an error in the PD might cause the problems you
mentioned. Since Dr's ususally don't write the PD on the perscription,
athat can be a source of error.

> > getting dizzy.- Hide quoted text -

[JameyWilson]

We measured the PD ourselves and it matches the measurement from the
last time I got glasses. The prescription is fine as long as I look
dead straight. It's when I get near the edges, everything gets
distorted. I can see double off the sides of the glasses which is very
distracting when I'm driving. It's like everything is smaller when I
look through these too. When I hold my old glasses up next to my new
glasses, you can tell easily that the lenses very different.
If I hold the edge of the glasses up near an object, I can't see it on
the old glasses, but I can see it like its in front of me in the new
ones. I doubt I'm explaining that very well, so I'll take a picture.
I'll also go get the prescription checked.

[JameyWilson]

Here's a quick video...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ng4cPcpxKaw

[Fred Di]

Looks normal to me.

On Mar 7, 5:33 am, JameyWilson <jameywil...@gmail.com> wrote:
> Here's a quick video...http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ng4cPcpxKaw

[Doug Herr]

On Fri, 7 Mar 2008, JameyWilson wrote:

> Here's a quick video...
> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ng4cPcpxKaw

I just re-read all your posts (I see 5). Just to confirm a few
things:

1. You have glasses from two different online stores using this new
script?

2. If so, they all share the same problem?

If yes to both, then I see two possible reasons for this. If you have
a mistake in your new script then it will be hard to deal with since
your OD will be reluctant to refund the price you paid for online
glasses if he/sh gave you a bad script. Or or you simple mis-read
part if it then clearly it will be seen as your fault.

The other option is simply that you are not yet used to this newer and
stronger script. Everything you wrote so far seems to point to
somebody who is getting used to a strong script. Nothing here looks
like any form of defect with the glasses.

[mzdtk]

Jamey plese look at you Rx and see if it says a number and base in.
Any time either my mother or I had the prism adjusted in our glasses
we experienced something like that before. For years I would not let
them touch the level of prism in my glasses this time though the
sudden change made me let the doctor decide we left it out my lenses
are very thin now but none of the double vision or dizziness like in
the past.

[mzdtk]

The video you had the link to was probably for a distance rx not a
reading or computer distance rx thats why the staple remover got
fuzzy.

[sj]

I looked at the video. The way things seem to "jump" and get smaller
as you move the glasses back and forth in front of the object is
normal for distance lenses. If I concentrate on the edge of my
glasses I can see obects both through the lens and outside past the
lens. A large change in prescription will take time to adjust to. If
your new lenses are much smaller or larger (diameter) than the old
ones the change will be even more disconcerting.

On Mar 7, 7:58 am, JameyWilson <jameywil...@gmail.com> wrote:

[JameyWilson]

***Update***

OK. After wearing my favorite of the 4 pair consistently for over a
week, I have gotten used to them. The ones I'm wearing are plastic
frames and are pretty thick, which is helping the transition at the
edge of the lens. The dizziness faded after a couple of days. I'm
still having a little trouble with the rimless glasses, but I'm going
to try and work them into a weekly rotation.

I chalk my previous bad review up to a new prescription, and thicker
than usual lenses.

I think I'm going to order another pair of plastic frames.
Zenni is definitely the cheapest and easiest to use of the online
retailers.

[Ira Mitchell]

Cheapest? Absolutely.

Easiest to use? Au Contraire Mon Frère.

Remind me to give you a call the next round of web usability testing I
go through. It's always nice to have alternative views of the world.

;-)

- Ira

[JameyWilson]

Which is easiest?

[courtn...@gmail.com]

I think it all depends on personal opinion to decide which is easiest.
For me its LBW eyewear :)

[sr912m]

Hi,
I have got my new glasses about 4 days ago and i have been trying
these glasses for the past 3 days and my peripheral vision seems to
be distorted.
Distance vision seems to be Ok. But closer vision (like looking at
computer , reading newspaper) seems to have distorted vision. Top it
seems to float up from left to right and
at the bottom , it seems to incline towards the bottom from left to
right . Almost like trapezoid. Even some shapes seems to be
distorted. Circles seem like distorted ellipse.
I had the glasses checked against my new prescription (which is about
2 diopters stronger in left eye than my old glasses) and the
prescription matches and PD seems to be off by a hair (less than 2mm).
Is this because of new prescription and will the adjustment period be
longer or is something wrong with my glasses or prescription?
Any suggestion are appreciated.
Thanks.

On Apr 1, 7:08 pm, "courtneyw...@gmail.com" <courtneyw...@gmail.com>
wrote:

> > > > retailers.- Hide quoted text -

[IMQ]

I think it would be more helpful if you can provide more information
about the glasses such as type of lenses (single, bifocal, multifocal,
etc), lens material (glass, CR-39, polycarbonate, hi-index, etc.),
maybe size of eye for your frame.

Someoneh who are knowledgeable may be able to help you or steer you in
the right direction.

Generally speaking, glass has the best optical quality, then CR-39.
Other plastic optical quality varies. Polycarbonate, although tough to
break, has much lower optical quality than CR-39 and glass.

The PD accuracy is important if you have progressive lenses because
they are multifocal, making them more difficult to craft than single
or bifocal. Even 2 mm off can make a difference. Also, the materials
for progressive vary from company to company.

I was in LensCrafters today, just looking around at the frames and
trying to get an estimate for putting the lenses into my own frame.
One of the customer service rep was showing me a relatively new lens
material that she claimed to be even better than Varilux. This new
material is said to have a wider peripheral vision than its
competitors.

My first experience with Zenni was good. I think partly because my
glasses are single vision, partly because the frame is small (50mm x
29mm). I have no distortion in my glasses, and I am confident that the
glasses match my prescription but I haven't checked with the local
optician yet.

Anyway, I hope someone can help you with your problem.

On Apr 2, 11:40 pm, sr912m <sr9...@yahoo.com> wrote:

[undone]

In the past, when my vision changed, requiring a stronger
prescription, I've noticed a similar type of initial distortion at
first. After a few days, however, my eyes adjusted and it no longer
was a problem. I'd give them a week and then have a local optical
place verify your prescription.

[sr912m]

Hi,
Thanks for the replies. I should have posted more info. as suggested
by IMQ.
My new glasses are single vision , 1.57 with AR coating. My frame size
is about same as previous one , lenses are little bit bigger.My
previous glasses i think were 1.67 (zenni wont do 1.67 with my
prescription).
My prescription is (i dont have it with me right now) arnd :
-1.25(cyl)/-1.5(sph) for right eye (about 0.25 change from
previous glasses) and -4.25(cyl)/-2.5(sph) for left eye (about 2.0
change from previous).
My vision check is done and prescription given by doctor(as opposed to
an optical shop).
I can see things much better and clearer with new glasses. However the
problem as i said in my previous post is seems like
distorted peripheral vision from close range. It has been about 3 days
since i have started using these new glasses.
The doctors office also told me to see for about a week as suggested
by undone. I am hoping it is the adjustment period which is causing
this issue. Please post your suggestions/experiences if any.

Thanks again.

> > On Apr 2, 11:40 pm, sr912m <sr9...@yahoo.com> wrote:- Hide quoted text -

[sr912m]

Hi,
Update to my previous posts:
It has been two more days (for a total of 6 days so far with new
glasses). and i am still having problems with the vision, it still
seems distorted..mainly it inclines up from left to right on top and
inclines towards bottom from left to right (not a perfect square).
The distortion is much more noticable from close range vision (working
with computer, looking at newspaper , a print out etc).
However the text , images and vision itself is clear and sharper ,
other than the fact that it is inclined from left to right.
My prescription is as mentioned in the prev.post except the
interchange of sph , cyl..i got confused which one was which.
This is my correct prescription :
-1.25(sph)/-1.5(cyl) for right eye (about 0.25 change from
previous glasses) and -4.25(sph)/-2.25(cyl) for left eye (about 2.0
combined
change from previous).
My frames are bendable titanium and abt same size as my previous.
(frame 3143 on zenni's site) .single vision 1.57 index lens with AR
coating. Lenses are little bit bigger.
According to the doctors office the lenses match the
prescription.except for 2 mm off in pd (They weren't real happy that i
didnt order glasses from them) , but i don't think that PD is the
issue here.
I am guessing may be the doctor wrote too strong prescription for my
left eye , because it appears as though the left eye may be making the
image smaller and angular on the left side and this may be the cause
of distortion. I am thinking of getting another eye exam at may be an
optical place instead of doctors office.
Any ideas? I have seen a couple of posts here one from JameyWilson and
another from Wiz which mentioned an initial adjustment period.
I am just worried that it has been 6 days and it still has not gotten
much better.If there is any improvement it is barely noticable.I have
been wearing eye glasses for more than 12 years now and i never had
this much longer adjusting period even with changed prescriptions.
Usually i used to see smaller with stronger prescription but only for
a day or 2 .This time i am not sure , because it has been 6 days and
the vision is still distorted.

Any ideas, suggestions are greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance.

> > - Show quoted text -- Hide quoted text -

[IMQ]

Hi sr912m,

Do you see the distortion in both lenses or just one of them?

Considering the not so positive comments about after-sale remedy, I
hate to, but at this point, suggest that you contact Zenni and see if
they can help. Maybe have them redo the lenses.

The pair of rimless I got from Zenni does not appear to have problem.
I tried to look at various rectangular objects to see if I experienced
any distortion but so far none. Maybe, you have an unfortunate case of
badly crafted lenses.

On Apr 6, 12:08 am, sr912m <sr9...@yahoo.com> wrote:

[sr912m]

Hi IMQ,

When i look thru one eye with other eye closed , the vision seems to
be OK. Other than the fact that , with left eye the Objects appear
smaller , which is causing me to think the left eye prescription might
be a bit strong. When i remove the glasses and view with bare eyes ,
the image distortion is the opposite way as to what it is with the
glasses (meaning expanded on left side and shrinking on right side),
which i am thinking is because may be my left eye is trying to over
compensate with the glasses on , and when the are removed the image
is distorted in opposite way.
I am thinking of getting a second opinion on the prescription before
contacting Zenni, for some reason i think the glasses are right and
according to the prescription. I will also get the glasses checked
when i go for the eye exam again. May be i will go to either walmart
or Sams.

Thanks for the replies.

I will keep posting my updates.

Thanks.

[Greg]

Here is an elementary question about how to use Zenni's web site
ordering. How do you order reading glasses? When you specify single-
vision lenses, I don't see any way to distinguish between single-
vision reading and single-vision distance. The procedure won't let
you give a prescription value for "add".

Also, I don't understand how you come up with the frame measurements
you need to know. (I've never had prescription glasses before.) I
got fitted for glasses at Costco, and the frames were specified by the
optician as 51/19/140, but I don't know whether those numbers come
from his measurements of me, or whether they describe the frames I
picked out of the sample display rack (in which case I don't trust
them at all).

[Chuck]

It's easy!

There is no difference between a reading prescription, and a distance
prescription...it just depends on the corrections that you need.

Let's make up a prescription, as an example. Both eyes the same...Sph
+1.00, Cyl +1.00, Axis 90, ADD +2.00.

Here's the way it works.

Your distance prescription is sphere +1, Cyl +1, Axis 90
Your reading prescription is Sph +3.00, Cyl +1, Axis 90. The sphere
is the sum of the distance correction + the add. Just simple math.

Glasses for computer use are also pretty simple. The rule of thumb is
to add half your ADD value...and that is your computer prescription.

-- Chuck Knight

[Chuck]

Now, frame dimensions. The ones you picked out have measurements of
51/19/140... That means that the glass part of each lens is 51mm
wide, the bridge (nose part) is 19mm wide, and the temple length (how
long the arms are) is 140mm.

Those numbers are printed by the manufacturer on the inside of the
frame...it has nothing to do with the nice man at CostCo.

Go back to CostCo, or wherever you want to shop for glasses, and try
on a few other frames. You'll discover that a certain general size
and shape tend to look best on you...

-- Chuck Knight



On Apr 10, 9:07 pm, Greg <g...@ling.lll.hawaii.edu> wrote:

[Greg]

On Apr 10, 6:51 pm, Chuck <chuckkni...@gmail.com> wrote:
> It's easy!
>
> There is no difference between a reading prescription, and a distance
> prescription...it just depends on the corrections that you need.
>
> Let's make up a prescription, as an example.  Both eyes the same...Sph
> +1.00, Cyl +1.00, Axis 90, ADD +2.00.
>
> Here's the way it works.
>
> Your distance prescription is sphere +1, Cyl +1, Axis 90
> Your reading prescription is Sph +3.00, Cyl +1, Axis 90.  The sphere
> is the sum of the distance correction + the add.  Just simple math.
>
> Glasses for computer use are also pretty simple.  The rule of thumb is
> to add half your ADD value...and that is your computer prescription.
>
>      -- Chuck Knight

Thanks a lot. Here are two related questions about glasses for
computer use. First, where does that rule of thumb come from?
What does it assume about how far your eyes will be from
a computer screen? E.g., if I sit 17" from the screen, how
much of the ADD value would I use?

And I'm also curious about "office lenses", which I saw
characterized somewhere as progressive lenses with the
top part tuned for computer screen distance and bottom
part tuned for your desktop. To see if I'm following what
you said, using your example numbers, I'd use a prescription
Sph +2.00 (1.00 plus half the ADD of 2.00), Cyl +1.00,
Axis 90, ADD 1.00 (the original ADD of 2.00 minus the
part added to the Sph value). Is that right?

- Greg

[Charles Knight]

I'm not exactly sure where that rule of thumb came from, but it's been around a long time.  And, it's been verified by my ophthalmologist, so it appears to be right.  He told me that it's because of the difference in the distance to what you're reading.  A reading prescription assumes around a 12" distance...right about where you would hold a book.  But, computer screens are often at "arm's length" which is roughly double that.

If you ask your eye doctor, he may specify a computer reading prescription...if not, you can easily calculate it yourself using this method.

One person on this list, however, has an even better suggestion...especially if your doctor didn't give you your computer prescription.  Start with the rule of thumb...in our example, that you need a +1 ADD.  Then, go to WalMart, try on some readers over your existing glasses, and try a couple different values in that area.  .75, 1.0, 1.25...  Anything alive, including our eyes, doesn't necessarily follow the "rules" perfectly.  Find the value that works best for you in that area, and then use *that.*

Oh, and the "office lenses" you mentioned are just standard progressives.  Nothing special about them...except that instead of distance and reading, it's computer and reading.  That's all...  In our example, we'd use sph +2 (the computer value), cyl +1, axis 90, and ADD +1 (which totals sph +3, the reading prescription) for the bottom part.  Because your eyes will be focused exclusively on "close up" stuff, though, you may need a reading PD distance -- ask your doctor about that one.

Sounds like you've got it down pat!

     -- Chuck Knight

P.S.  I did the same thing as you when I first started wearing glasses...looking into and wanting every single option.  For your FIRST order, since you're brand new to glasses, I suggest that you keep it simple.  I, personally, started with a pair of distance glasses and a pair of reading glasses...both from the $8 rack at Zenni.  Learned quite a lot from the experience, too.  The PD for the reading glasses should be about 3mm narrower than the PD for distance...  And, do get the anti reflection coating.  At Zenni's price of $4.95, it's well worth it. 

My two pairs cost $26, combined.  $8 + $5 (AR) for one, $8 for the other, and $5 shipping for the entire order.

By just placing an order, you'll know immediately if you can deal with online glasses, and you'll be out a minimal amount of money...while becoming a MUCH more informed consumer.  Nothing can replace first-hand experience!

[Greg]

On Apr 11, 5:19 am, "Charles Knight" <chuckkni...@gmail.com> wrote:
> ...  The PD for the reading glasses should be about

> 3mm narrower than the PD for distance...  

And for computer use, 1 or 2mm narrower?

Thanks again,
-Greg

[IMQ]

The frame number is exactly what it is, the measurements for the
frame. Not your face. The standard 3 numbers represent eye size, nose
bridge, and temple. Usually written in that order. By the way, the
numbers are listed in millimeter (mm).

But you must know the overall width of your frame to get a good fit.

If your old frame fits you well, take your old frame and the straight
ruler with millimeter scales, then measure the distance between the
two temples. This number will be likely different from the sum of (eye
size + nose bridge + eye size).

For example, in your case, the overall width is going to be bigger
than 51+19+51=121.

Keep in mind that the overall width will be different from brand to
brand for the same frame numbers. So a 51/19/140 frame from Nike may
not have the same overall width as the one from Prada, D&G, etc. They
are even different within the same brand for different styles.


On Apr 10, 10:07 pm, Greg <g...@ling.lll.hawaii.edu> wrote:

[IMQ]

About Occupational Lenses:

I believe the so called "office lenses" are classified as occupational
lenses. Take a look at these links:

http://www.allaboutvision.com/over40/work_bifocals.htm

and here

http://www.laramyk.com/learn/lens_types.html

About computer glasses:

IMHO, everyone uses computer differently. The distance from the a user
to the monitor is different from person to person. Just like for
reading, there is a range of distance for which a person can feel
comfortable. I don't remember the source for this but the reading
range is somewhere around 16-21 inches while for computer is aorund
18-30 inches. One thing obvious to me is that how far a user sits from
the monitor depends on several factors: how big is the screen, the
screen resolution. and the quality of the scree. Assuming, of course,
that the user's eyesight are corrected with or without contacts or
glasses.

Again, this is my humble opinion.

There are suggestions in this forum on how to determine your computer
prescription based on your prescription you got from the the eye
exam.

Of course, one can also get the Rx from the Dr. but I believe they
charge extra. And I am not sure if all Dr. are specialized in computer
glasses.



On Apr 11, 4:51 am, Greg <g...@ling.lll.hawaii.edu> wrote:

[sr912m]

Hi All,

Update to my previous posts ..
I had the glasses checked and my prescription verified at
walmart(second opinion).
According to the doctor it is a combination of few things : 1.On the
glasses the base curve and center thickness doesnt match on both
lenses , 2.My previous prescription is a bit stronger on the left eye
(about 0.5 diopters combined between sph and cyl). I am going to order
another frame with new prescription , but i don't see where i can
mention in the order about matching the base curve and center
thickness on Zennis site.. may be i will try goggles4u as well. I am
going to order fairly cheap glasses(Previously i ordered with $25
frame on Zenni) and see if they work and then may be go for better
ones.

> > On Apr 6, 12:08 am, sr912m <sr9...@yahoo.com> wrote:- Hide quoted text -

[sprocket...@gmail.com]

Hi all, just wanted to throw in my review of Zenni.

I wear contacts but desperately needed to replace my backup glasses.
I am so glad I found Glassy Eyes instead of going to the local
"discount" eyeglass place.

Long story short, I ordered 2 pairs of glasses from Zenni: single-
vision, no extra coatings, lowest-index plastic, $8 frames. My total
w/ shipping was $21. I was at least a little skeptical but figured 20
bucks I could afford to lose. I ordered on a Monday evening, about 9pm
(EST) and recieved the glasses on the wednessday of the next week; 9
days total.

To check the prescription I wore the glasses for the entirety of the
next day and had no eye strain or headache. There doesn't seem to be
any distortion of the lenses and they are crystal clear. I especially
like that the edges of the lenses are polished; my old ones were not
and with the low-index plastic it makes them look extra thick. All in
all I really love the new glasses and now I am not in huge hurry to
put my contacts in every morning because my glasses are so nice. The
frames I would definitely say you can tell they are of cheap quality,
just because they seem a little "plain" but from more than a few
inches away, they are great!

Here's a couple pictures of the 2 frames I ordered:
http://groups.google.com/group/glassyeyes/browse_thread/thread/7c49401bb850fc9f/154fd4dccc0b2dd1?hl=en&