I love to acquire and share knowledge, and here's my latest findings: over two months ago at the behest of my beloved wife, I was seriously thinking of getting a new pair of glasses. Men, you have got to be sexy for your lovahs! My older pair were 7+ years old, bulky, and overall weren't me. That, and the prescription was seriously dated, so I wasn't seeing as well as I could. I looked around at several stores, including Costco, and typical prices ran from US$150-300 AND UPWARDS for frame + lenses.
(I know what Tourettes Guy would say to that… @$#%!)
My gosh, "There's got to be a better way!" I tensely exclaimed to myself, and it's within those tense self-exclamations that I rationalize, "You can buy a lot of things through the Internet for cheap!" Not wanting to be reckless, however, I let the idea float…
Some days later, 43Folders, a productivity site I frequent, had a helpful writeup about cheap AND quality glasses from Matt Haughey (of another site I frequent, Metafilter — excellence really is connected). I linked over to Glassy Eyes, which proclaims its banner as:
shattering the eyeglasses scam
I couldn't resist that. Gotta be a smart consumer in this day and age where unscrupulous jerks will try to bilk you for bucks if you aren't assertive, awake, and call them out on their crap. Come armed with knowledge, ask the right questions, and hopefully get answers you feel better about.
Anyway, I read through Glassy Eyes, enlightening myself to the fact that "You don't have to waste ludicrous amounts for good eyewear!", and even found myself looking at this watermelony pair acquired by Whoa! Sweet Jane for US$20 (!). She graciously replied to my email today saying that this set doesn't look available anymore (sigh), but these look close. Thanx!
Back to the story, I checked out "The Big 5" list and decided to go with Goggles4u.com, which may not be the most confidence-inspiring of names, and their search engine is unintuitive. But I had my prescription and approximate dimensions of what frames would fit me thanx to Dr. Meghan B. Ashton and her assistants, and I also printed out a PD (pupillary distance) ruler. On a regular piece of paper. My wife measured that spec, and while I admittedly had my heart set on Takumi T9640s earlier, those frames alone are ~US$150, so I opened up to new possibilities.
After searching for something stylish, unintrusive, and even a little cyberpunky, I found #18385 on Goggles4u, whose example picture's lenses look so light that they're almost invisible against the white background. And at a cost of US$13, these frames are less than 1/10th of the Takumi's price! Researching further, I flipped back and forth between this and similar-looking frames like #18222, and made my decision on #18385. I figured, "If this goes bad, I don't have a big hole in my wallet, and if this goes well, I've triumphed in my experiment!" (I like to run experiments ordering things off the Internet.)
Looking at the options, I opted for 1.67 CR39s which raised the cost of lenses from US$13 to $40. I also used the 5% discount code offered at Glassy Eyes which knocked the price down to US$50.34 (sadly, I missed an even better 20% off deal a few days earlier), and placed my order.
I was surprised to see that Goggles4U ships for free internationally, which is pretty sweet for you worldwide types. 
Apparently, repeat customers get 15% off — what an incentive. Also, it uses CCNow as its merchant processor, which made me smile a bit because I used them when I was selling music CDs a decade ago.
The order was received on Dec. 2, shipped on Dec. 7, and I got the glasses on Dec. 14 — yesterday. They came well-packed in a box addressed from Cerritos, CA with a total of US$1.98 in postage stamps stuck on the surface.
I used an X-acto knife to open 'er up, and was pleased to find that the glasses were cushioned in cotton gauze within a hard case (with simulated leather patterning) lined with fabric. A cleaning cloth + screw tightener tool were also provided, rounding out the package. And yes, the frames did look accurate compared to the picture.
I tried them on right away, bounded up the stairs, and approached my wife like a crocodile snakes towards a baby duck, only friendlier. She noticed with much kittenish excitement (I love this "wavy arm" thing she does), and likes them a lot more. I do too — my vision is noticeably crisper, clearer, and the frames sit lighter on my face. And keeping my general reservation of "It's only been a day, I may have to followup in the long-term to accurately review how these new glasses have served me!" in mind, I do have a trio of qualms:
- The frameless design I chose has screws that poke out close to my face. It's been a bit distracting.
- The frames are a bit tighter than I thought they'd be. Not head-crushingly excruciating, but… snug.
- I wrote to Goggles4U support a couple days ago and they haven't gotten back to me yet, despite their website assurance to the contrary. [UPDATE @ 2007-12-17 - I did get a brief reply from them during the weekend briefly saying, "The glasses will be delivered to you any day now.", which I did!]
I'm hoping I can get used to both of these technical negative points over time, and if I don't, hey, another set of glasses is cheap. I also want to hear back from Goggles4U (I simply asked them if they knew where my glasses were in the mail).
Old pair on bottom, NEW on top…
I'll give a big YAYZERAMA! to Ira of Glassy Eyes for being such a good shepherd of superior, affordable glassmanship. Ira, the work you do is graciously appreciated, and thanx to you and the nice peeps who submitted their stories to your site, I'm now sharing my story at large, happy I took the risk because of the rewards —
BEFORE & AFTER:
GET YOUR GLASSES ON!
![Torley posted a photo:[13:53] White Lebed: When I met Jayjay and joined the UWA sims as an artist-in-residence I didn't know much about this place. Once I realize what an amazingly special wonderful program this small team runs I was so impressed. And I wanted everybody know about what is going on here. Since it is better to see once than hear 100 times, I thought it would be the best way to tell the world about them is to invite machinima artists and ask them to film it. It was wonderful to be able to see this place through your eyes. And I love that the machinimas we got were not just advertisements, they were wonderful art pieces. What I never expected is that Jay will turn out to be the best fundraiser in thPosted by Second Life Resident Torley Linden. Visit University of WA.](http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2693/4341983054_53aed5ab46_s.jpg "Torley posted a photo:[13:53] White Lebed: When I met Jayjay and joined the UWA sims as an artist-in-residence I didn't know much about this place. Once I realize what an amazingly special wonderful program this small team runs I was so impressed. And I wanted everybody know about what is going on here. Since it is better to see once than hear 100 times, I thought it would be the best way to tell the world about them is to invite machinima artists and ask them to film it. It was wonderful to be able to see this place through your eyes. And I love that the machinimas we got were not just advertisements, they were wonderful art pieces. What I never expected is that Jay will turn out to be the best fundraiser in thPosted by Second Life Resident Torley Linden. Visit University of WA.")
![Torley posted a photo:[13:47] Jayjay Zifanwe: CISKO VANDEVERRE, Berlin, GermanySEEKwww.youtube.com/watch?v=H6zbFx3DxwsPosted by Second Life Resident Torley Linden. Visit University of WA.](http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2773/4341231363_c8b3458d23_s.jpg "Torley posted a photo:[13:47] Jayjay Zifanwe: CISKO VANDEVERRE, Berlin, GermanySEEKwww.youtube.com/watch?v=H6zbFx3DxwsPosted by Second Life Resident Torley Linden. Visit University of WA.")
![Torley posted a photo:[13:44] Jayjay Zifanwe shouts: BRADLEY DORCHESTER, Perth, AustraliaMachinimUWA: Art Architecture, Research, Teachingwww.youtube.com/watch?v=YN1k80dA3I8Posted by Second Life Resident Torley Linden. Visit University of WA.](http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2737/4341230493_2f782e6088_s.jpg "Torley posted a photo:[13:44] Jayjay Zifanwe shouts: BRADLEY DORCHESTER, Perth, AustraliaMachinimUWA: Art Architecture, Research, Teachingwww.youtube.com/watch?v=YN1k80dA3I8Posted by Second Life Resident Torley Linden. Visit University of WA.")
![Torley posted a photo:[13:42] Jayjay Zifanwe: COLEMARIE SOLEIL, Florida USA UWA Machinima Challenge Submissionwww.youtube.com/watch?v=KdIQP-YrYLwPosted by Second Life Resident Torley Linden. Visit University of WA.](http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2689/4341963584_bda095aac6_s.jpg "Torley posted a photo:[13:42] Jayjay Zifanwe: COLEMARIE SOLEIL, Florida USA UWA Machinima Challenge Submissionwww.youtube.com/watch?v=KdIQP-YrYLwPosted by Second Life Resident Torley Linden. Visit University of WA.")
![Torley posted a photo:[13:38] Jayjay Zifanwe: CHANTAL HARVEY, Maastricht, NetherlandsUniversity of Western Australia in Second Lifewww.youtube.com/watch?v=tR_pc90Eu4k[13:39] Jayjay Zifanwe: I want to say hi to all machinimatographers and their friends, fans and crews.Before I go into details, I want to express that I am very sorry that I cannot be here myself, at this ceremony - my real life got in the way. My boss wont give me the night off, not even for an important event like this. (cries). My ONE chance to meet the famous Torley and ask him to consider being a part of the MMIF machinima festival on the 20th of Februari - down the drain!Posted by Second Life Resident Torley Linden. Visit University of WA.](http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2753/4341958070_318b895425_s.jpg "Torley posted a photo:[13:38] Jayjay Zifanwe: CHANTAL HARVEY, Maastricht, NetherlandsUniversity of Western Australia in Second Lifewww.youtube.com/watch?v=tR_pc90Eu4k[13:39] Jayjay Zifanwe: I want to say hi to all machinimatographers and their friends, fans and crews.Before I go into details, I want to express that I am very sorry that I cannot be here myself, at this ceremony - my real life got in the way. My boss wont give me the night off, not even for an important event like this. (cries). My ONE chance to meet the famous Torley and ask him to consider being a part of the MMIF machinima festival on the 20th of Februari - down the drain!Posted by Second Life Resident Torley Linden. Visit University of WA.")
![Torley posted a photo:[13:36] Jayjay Zifanwe: LASLOPANTOMIK YAO, Barcelona, Spain MachinimUWAblip.tv/file/3147141 (LASLOPANTOMIK YAO, Barcelona, Spain MachinimUWA blip.tv/file/3147141)Posted by Second Life Resident Torley Linden. Visit University of WA.](http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4006/4341206009_e30658c02b_s.jpg "Torley posted a photo:[13:36] Jayjay Zifanwe: LASLOPANTOMIK YAO, Barcelona, Spain MachinimUWAblip.tv/file/3147141 (LASLOPANTOMIK YAO, Barcelona, Spain MachinimUWA blip.tv/file/3147141)Posted by Second Life Resident Torley Linden. Visit University of WA.")
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oo what a handsome fella! I'll take the before and after guy! <3
This is an interesting post. I don't know if I have ever told you this before, but before I got involved in internet startup-dom, I used to be a surgical assistant for an Ophthalmologist. Our clinic was really busy (150+ patients a day) and we had a lab for grinding glasses, too.
I have to chime in and say that I don't necessarily think that $150 is a bad price for glasses at all. I'd say that's actually fairly average and appropriate and not a rip-off at all. My last two pairs were 'designer' frames – one from Ralph Lauren and one from Guess – and both would have cost me upwards of $800 had they not been comped by the office I was working at. (We got one pair a year free.) I have a very simple Rx that is easy to grind, too.
I was glad to read you actually had them measure you in the doctor's office before you ordered. People make the mistake of assuming that once you know the strength of the lenses, ordering the frames should be very simple, completely ignoring all the measurements that go into just the frame itself. If you have a more complicated Rx (say, something with a bifocal – which requires a measurement called seg height, or astigmatism – which is easy to cut wrong because you have to take into account the angle of the lens) getting one of those measurements wrong by even a couple of millimeters can really screw you up, making you feel off balance.
What I would recommend to anyone else going to do this – DO make sure you ask your doctor to measure you. Getting even something like your PDs should only take them a moment (there's a machine that does it) and getting the proper numbers for it can make a HUGE difference in comfort and function. And DO know the policies of the site you're using as far as making further adjustments. Even that $300 pair at the office could need some adjusting once they come in.
On a semi-related note, if you ever lose the screws or nosepads or bend your glasses up a little bit, you can almost always just pop into any store that sells glasses and ask them to patch you up. They will almost always do it for free, because it's very simple to do those kinds of touchups. I used to see so many patients that had gone a year without a nosepad or something because they didn't realize this.
Your new glasses look great, though. Those little frameless ones are really hip. Use both hands to take them on and off and they will last longer.
Eyeball nerd,
Thau
Those inexpensive and simple-yet-stylish glasses make it look like you've found yourself an Eye-KEA ^_^. I'll have this effort in mind if my eyes ever grow out of focus. (Still haven't found something that works for my nearsighted brain, however….)
weird.. my super long comment to you hasn't shown up. too long? moderated? dunno!
I forgot one thing: If you are abusive to your glasses, like me, keep your eyes out for Teflon lens coatings. They tend to be a little expensive but are SO AWESOME for keeping them scratch-resistant. Two years in my most recent pair and not a scratch on them, despite frequent trips in my purse, right next to my keys. This is different from regular old scratch-resistant coatings. TEFLON.
Haha, Torley, you are one smart shopper! I should get around to real life stuff as well
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I love the subtle change in expression between the Before and After pictures. And yay for lookin smexy for the wifey! Mission accomplished!
Thanks for this post! I spent close to $300 on my glasses a couple years ago – after insurance. Since they're so expensive, such a strong prescription and since I wear my contacts most of the time, I only have one pair of glasses every five years or so. Now I can consider the possibility of having a spare and possibly even prescription sunglasses. At those prices I might even have different frames for different occasions!
On a separate note, thanks for continuing to make music! I may not always reply when you post it, but I always listen and always appreciate it, and share it with my friends!
@Ravie: I've got you, babe. <3
@Al: Haha, "Eye-KEA", I do have some actual IKEA furniture. I always say, "Why pay more than you have to?" Nothing wrong with saving money to get quality goods, only lotsa right. ^_^
I like checking your blog everyday because you're so well informed and also have top class quality knowledge about second life. I'm not hoping to see inside knowledge or anything. Just clean knowledge. Thankyou.
well! that was an unexpected little article that I thoroughly enjoyed! Lol.. too cool Torley! Who knew?? I just made the leap to contacts after almost 10 years of glasses… but, next time I go back thanks to you Ill have a new frame of reference! =)
and!
Ya look great in your new glasses! oooooh…. its like getting new skin huh? oooooh! might even change your attitutude a bit! lol
Thanks Torley….
You look soo cute in your new specs! I used to have specs like your old pair, I now use them when I have to paint the ceiling. They are now spotty specs!!
Think yourself lucky you don't live in the UK. I have 2 pairs of glasses. One, a clunky "cheap" pair that I got free on the NHS which look identical to Austin Powers' glasses and have milk bottle type lenses (my eyes suck big time!) Those would have cost me £60 (about 120 US $) if I hadn't been unemployed at the time.
My good pair (which look kinda like yours) cost me £150 for the frames (which were designer, but were also on special offer) and £250 for the non-chunky lenses. That's around 800 US$ total!!!
Great stuff Torley! I've just started my own adventures in eyeglasses shopping this week, and will definitely check this out!
Uwajimaya in Seattle (Uwajimaya.com) has an asian designer eyeglass market with some FAB frames (with lenses) for under $100. They're not as cheep as your place, but they have the benefit of being able to try them on!
how many prims are the new ones Torley? Fewer too?
Muuuuch better Torley. But being an Italian now, I cannot stress enough the importance of being fashionable. And fashionable, mr. Cheapskate, usually means expensive! It seems that you are only able to be in fashion when you let those euros (dollars, yen, zloty, pounds sterling) roll…
By the way, it seems i am back in-world. Just my luck that I am departing for a vacation in two days. Sigh. Will be seeing you!
Muuuuch better Torley. But… being that I live in italy now I must teach you something about fashion. You cannot be fashionable unless you spend money! Loads of it!
Imagine Dolge & Gabbana selling their sunglasses for 10 bucks a pair. Same design, same logo on the side, same quality. They would NOT be fashionable. The ONLY difference between fashionable D&G wear and unfashionable D&G wear is the price!
So… you are not fashionable. Sorry, peccato… you got to let those euros (dollars, zloty, pounds sterling) roll!
By the way, it seems I am back on ADSL. Will see you in-world soon I hope – luck has it there's a holiday trip coming up, so I'll have to go without SL for a bit longer…
Torley, , a site for 'reading glasses' has the most extravagant amount of 'betterly designed' frames at any reading magnification for $55. My best friend just takes 'em down to his local eyeglass shop and has 'em pop in his prescription! and they look GREAT. all best, K.
sorry, used the tag improperly! ach, my bad html!
the site is EYEBOBS
let's see if THAT works. best, Kamerin
@Earl: That's very nice of you, and thanks for sharing this with me!
@Collin: I'd leap to contacts or laser eye surgery if my particular flavor of astigmatism wasn't blocking me from doing so (I wore contacts before and they had to be hard lenses… ouch); but perhaps science will advance to a point where I can just SEE THE WORLD CLEARLY sans glasses again. And thanx!
@Roxette: Aw! Glad you found a use for your old specs, my old pair are sitting in a case and I don't intend to dispose of them yet — they may be good for some "messy tasks" as you point out.
@Newton: That is terribly high. Ouch, ouch! I presume a lot of things are comparatively more expensive in the UK than US (including VAT)?
@Keystone: Let me know how they go/went, best of hope!
@Strawberry: Never heard of them before, need to check 'em out.
@Pompo: They have greater draw distance, ha-ha!
@Laetizia: Was good to see ya at my last office hour.
@kamerin: Linky worked, thanks for pointing me there!
Torley, you don't want to know what my glasses cost. I have -8 and a bit of the ugly old astigmatism, too….buying a frame isn't the problem, but getting the prescription lenses themselves is-normal price about 150 bucks PER LENS.
…forgot to mention and can't edit: That would be in Germany, and they scrapped getting your glasses paid by the health service years ago….
Well, when you get older, and wind up with cataracts, like I did, you can now get an IOL (intra ocular lens) that replaces the cloudy one so that it will fix the presbyopia that you undoubtedly would have by then (bifocals) OR will correct for astigmatism up to about 5 diopters. By that time, they may be able to correct for both.
I got an IOL (Toric lens) that corrected my distance vision to 20/20, which I NEVER had in my life – my last prescription in that eye was 4.00 S and 2.75 C. I don't need glasses now except for reading.
email is human readable – aloud.
Goggles4u ALWAYS GET THE PD WRONG!!!!!!!!!!!! BECAUSE IT WOULD COST TO MUCH TO SHIP THE FRAMES BACK, I HAD TO KEEP ON SELECTING DIFFERENT FRAMES B/C THE ONES THEY POST ONLY LAST UP TO 72 HOURS AT MOST. I HAD TO DO THIS 3 TIMES BEFORE THE MORONS COULD GET IT CLOSE!! THEY ARE NOT!!! I REPEAT NOT!!! LICENSED OPTOMITRISTS OR EVEN REMOTELY CLOSE TO OPTHAMOLOGISTS!!! THEY ARE IDIOTS ENTERING NUMBERS INTO A MACHINE THAT THEY CLEARLY HAVE NO IDEA HOW TO CALIBRATE!!…OH, BUT IF YOU DO NOT CARE ABOUT HAVING YOUR PD OFF BY AT LEAST 10 POINTS, THEN THEY ARE A GOOD DEAL!! THEY TRY TO BE HELPFULL, BUT THAT DOES NOT HELP WHEN YOU DO NOT KNOW WHAT YOU ARE DOING INCORRECTLY…READ OTHER POSTS ABOUT THEIR PD'S BEING OFF…
OH, UNABLE TO EDIT….I DID LIKE 39DOLLAR GLASSES. THEY WERE MORE MONEY, BUT THE QUALITY FRAMES ARE MUCH BETTER AND THEY NEVER MESSED UP THE RX OR PD LIKE GOGGLES4U
I've ordered a couple pairs of specs from http://www.clearlylenz.com and they turned out perfect even with my astigmatism. I think it's quite hard to mess up when those lens grinding machines are all automated. Great post!
Have you tried GlassesUSA? They sell some awesome eyeglasses! You should try it: http://www.glassesusa.com
Get 10% off when you use the code: US10