I’ve needed eyeglasses since I was in grade school. Being near-sighted with astigmatism, I had to wear eyeglasses all the time, which I hated when I was younger. My prescription was so high and the lenses were always thick and heavy. In college I wore extended wear soft contact lenses and needed to wear eyeglasses occasionally as backup. But now after developing dry-eyes, my doctor shifted me to Scleral Gas Permeable Hard Contact Lenses to lessen my eye strain, especially after long hours of working in front of the computer. But for the past two years that I’ve been wearing Scleral Contact lenses, I’ve had a pair of reading glasses perched on top of my head just in case. Regular reading glasses did not protect me from eyestrain when working on the computer nor from the glare of the sun. After a long day at the office, my eyes were tired, driving home was sometimes a challenge. Then I learned that Carl Zeiss could tailor-fit a pair of spectacles for me that would address all of my concerns:
Design 5.0/5.0
Made of ultra-thin lightweight materials, Zeiss lenses are designed with the user’s utmost comfort in mind. Each pair of eyeglasses is tailor-made to address the user’s vision requirements.
In my case, I needed progressive lenses as base to correct my near vision for reading as well as allow me to see distant objects clearly without needing to remove or change my eyeglasses. And because I work in front of a computer all day, blue-light filters were recommended to reduce eye-strain. PhotoFusion, which automatically darkens the lenses when exposed to UV and sunlight, was added so I don’t have to put on sunglasses whenever I go outdoors. Lastly I needed to have DriveSafe glasses so that I could have clearer vision when driving, especially at night.
Hardware 5.0/5.0
Whether made out of glass or plastic, each pair of Carl Zeiss spectacles takes advantage of their advanced technology to provide the user with the clearest vision possible.
Even with all the added features I requested for my eyeglasses, it weighs just 17 g–the lightest glasses I’ve ever had–and this already includes the frame. I admit that I also chose super lightweight titanium frame, but it is 10 g lighter than my back-up glasses which is also made of ultra-thin glass.
User Experience 5.0/5.0
I spent about an hour at George Optical for the required eye check up and to select the frame. Then it took about eight working days for my custom-made glasses to come back from Carl Zeiss in Germany, and it had all of the following features.
Progressive lens are designed to correct vision from near to far with smooth progression. With it, there’s no need to remove my glasses when I need to look at distant objects. As the base lens, these were so thin and lightweight, it is comfortable to wear all day.
Duravision Blueprotect is a special coating for clear lenses that filters blue light and prevents eyestrain when one is exposed to indoor lighting, computer screens, etc. for extended periods. So even when I have to work on the computer or be exposed to bright indoor light, I am protected from its harmful effects.
Meanwhile, Photofusion is Carl Zeiss’ version of self-tinting lenses that darken when exposed to UV light. PhotoFusion is new technology that was introduced in 2011. It darkens and clears the glasses faster than previous versions of self-tinting glasses. Since the lens automatically darkens as soon as I step out into the sunlight, I no longer need to bring sunglasses.
The last feature I’d like to highlight is the DriveSafe Lenses which are specially designed to improve driving vision especially at night, and protect the eyes from reflections. This is my favorite feature because objects are much clearer when driving especially at night.
Value 4.0/5.0
I have to say that because of the lens features I selected plus the super lightweight titanium frame I chose, these glasses did not come cheap. But in my opinion it was worth the investment as I have not had one stress headache or eyestrain in the 30 days that I have been wearing these glasses.
Bottomline
Worth the investment.
Also published in Gadgets Magazine December 2017-January 2018 issue
Words by Presy Alba