My Glasses From Zenni Optical Have Arrived
powrwrap
Optical on August 22nd. They arrived today, September 4th, or 13 days
later, which included a mail delivery holiday of Labor Day, otherwise
they might have arrived in 12 days.
I was initially surprised at the minimal packaging that accompanied
the glasses, a 6" X 9" bubble lined paper envelope. Inside the bubble
envelope was a transparent plastic bag marked Made in China. Inside
this bag was a thin plastic hinged case, flimsy really, which
contained the glasses. I won't be using the case. The glasses were
tightly wrapped in a lens cleaning cloth. Upon further review, since
the glasses are polycarbonate, are cushioned in a lens cloth, packed
in a plastic case, inside a bubble envelope, there really isn't much
more packaging needed.
I was impressed with the quality of the frames and the lenses. Nary a
scratch or a mark on the lenses and the frames were sturdy,
lightweight, and sparkled with a gold finish. Easily equivalent in
quality to anything at LensCrafters or Pearle Vision.
I put them on and was immediately impressed with the quality of the
distance vision. For example, I could read the license plate numbers
on the vehicles parked in the driveways across the street, something I
haven't been able to do for years, not even with the last pair of
glasses ($305 at Sam's Club three years ago). My old glasses have
micro scratches on them from being cleaned so many times over the
years that seeing clearly and correctly with the Zenni's was a real
eye opener. :-D
Close up vision for reading was also very good. I haven't been using
glasses to read for so long that it seemed as if these new glasses
were magnifying the print. It sure is a welcome experience to be able
to hold a book within 12 inches of my face. The inexpensive Zenni
progressive lens are even better at providing a wide angle for reading
than the Varilux progressives I had in my old glasses. My complaint
with reading with progressive lenses is that the edges of the pages
are not quite in focus meaning you have to move your head to read the
sentences rather than just move your eyes across the page. Amazingly
the Zenni glasses do not exhibit this tunnel vision effect nearly as
badly as the Varilux lenses.
Intermediate vision and peripheral vision are typical for progressive
lenses--only OK. You definitely have to point and/or tilt your head to
see things properly. They seem to be worse than my old glasses but it
could be that I'm not adapted to the new prescription quite yet.
I don't wear my glasses when using the computer but I tried the
Zenni's to see how they fared. I won't be using them, but they were
easier on the eyes than my old pair.
There is one problem--the nose pads are not properly adjusted for my
face, and probably not the temples either. I'm going to take them into
an optician and have them fitted to my face. While I'm there I'll get
the prescription checked for accuracy (though I can't imagine it's
incorrect since I see so clearly with them). I'm kind of leery about
bending the nose pad arms myself because the adjustment I need to make
is somewhat substantial. I did find this article about adjusting them
yourself, if you are inclined: http://www.eyeglasses.com/html/learn/adjusting_your_eyeglasses.shtml
So chalk me up as another satisfied Zenni customer. I saved over $294
buying them from Zenni rather than the next cheapest store I found,
Sam's Club, and saved over $545 vs. the designer label frames at an
independent optical shop.
powrwrap
The first day I was having trouble with my peripheral vision being
blurry and my eyes seemed tired, plus I detected a slight headache. so
I decided to adjust my nosepads and temple arms. After adjusting, the
glasses performed a little bit better but it was still necessary to
turn my head to actually focus on objects. (Yes, I know this is
typical of progressive lenses, but I've been wearing them for five
years now.) If I went back to my old glasses I wouldn't really have
this problem. I was kind of amazed that my brain could "go back" to my
old glasses so easily.
Day two was more of the same--crummy peripheral vision, tired eyes,
and slight headaches.
Day three I decided to take the glasses in for a check using an
opticians lensometer. These devices can detect your prescription by
examining the eyeglass lenses. Also, I would ask for an adjustment
while I was there. I went to a Pearle Vision store and had them check
the glasses.
My prescription written OD -0.75 Add +2.25 OS -0.75
Add +2.25
What Pearle read OD -1.0 Add +2.25 OS
-1.0 Add +2.25
Ok, now I'm wondering if Zenni made a mistake grinding my lenses. Time
for another opinion. (I didn't have time for a fiting, as they were
somewhat busy at Pearle.)
Day Four. No more headaches, eyes are tired. Apparently I'm adapting
to the new glasses. Since I was going to Wal Mart anyway I decided to
have them test my glasses. I had looked at frames there and was
surprised that the opticians there were quite knowledgable and
helpful. They came up with:
OD -0.75 Add +2.00 OS -0.75 Add +2.25
but explained that the 2.00 reading might not be accurate because the
reading was taken low on the lens, near the edge.
Joe
Most opticians aren't' going to take the time to do it exactly
precisely.
A difference of 0.25 is barely noticeable especially on progressives.
Barely noticeable by a human or the lensometer.
You are likley used to the exact makup of the lenses, i.e. where and
how fast the transition is. What you prescription means is it should
be -0.75 on the top of the lense, and +1.5 on the bottom (+2.25-0.75=
+1.50)
I don't buy progressives anymore, I simply buy lots of $8 single
vision glasses with different add value built in.
But with your prescription, your distance vision is only very slightly
off. I would buy a pair of -0.75 single vision for driving and maybe
TV watching. Then for reading get a pair of +1.50 reading glasses at
wal-mart. Your intermediate vision is probably fine with no glasses
at all.
You will have better peripheral vision with single vision lenses than
progressives.
powrwrap
> I don't buy progressives anymore, I simply buy lots of $8 single
> vision glasses with different add value built in.
>
> But with your prescription, your distance vision is only very slightly
> off. I would buy a pair of -0.75 single vision for driving and maybe
> TV watching. Then for reading get a pair of +1.50 reading glasses at
> wal-mart. Your intermediate vision is probably fine with no glasses
> at all.
Yes, I'm looking to buy a set of readers and have tried on +1.50 at
both Wal-Mart and Walgreen's. That's the correct value for my
purposes. However the price is $19.97 at Wal-Mart and $27.99 at Wal-
Mart, with the bonus being the glasses are cheaply made, don't fit
properly, and ugly. I can get a set with the proper dimensions in a
somewhat stylish frame delivered for $12.95 from Zenni.
Do you recommend A/R coating for readers?
You are correct--my intermediate distance vision from about 18" to 36"
is very good.
Joe
Years ago, prior to Zenni, my eye Dr wrote "no coatings" on my
prescription so the optical shops couldn't give me their hard sell on
overpriced coatings.
But I have researched AR coatings, and it does seem to have benefits,
though I have not tried it.
For $5 I might but a lot of the benefit is cosmetic, people looking at
you won't see reflections in your glasses, they see your eyes better.