TL;DR I was pleasantly surprised by the optical quality of Zenni and the physical appearance. The construction is obviously cheap when holding them, but glasses are meant to be worn not held. When worn, they feel like any other glasses. And they cost $75 instead of $500.
The Story: 7 years ago I bought prescription Oakley glasses (everyday wear, not sunglasses). I spent extra to have Oakley manufacture proprietary lenses. Total cost, around $500. And for the past 7 years I have worn Oakley frames and lenses exclusively, $450-$550 per pair. Sure, they’re expensive, but that’s because of the quality, right? And can you put a price on eyesight? I have updated my lenses a few times, but only had 2 pairs of frames and they have held up remarkably well, outside of a little chipped paint here and there.
After finding out on Reddit about the Luxottica near-monopoly on frames and glasses, and that in fact glasses are not nearly so expensive to manufacture, I started looking at other options. It seemed like a lot of people in /r/frugal had success with mail-order.
With the low cost, and my annual insurance benefit of up to $100 for glasses resetting soon, I decided to go ahead and buy a set from Zenni for comparison. The optometrist told me I would regret ordering online (he sells a lot of designer brands). Websites say that discount glasses can be dangerous, presumably because they don’t manufacture the lenses to the same precision and it can cause strain on your eye? I mean, if all the manufacturers are using polycarbonate or trivex, I can’t imagine that lenses from any one manufacturer are any more likely to shatter.
I ordered a pair of Zenni glasses and paid a little extra for the higher-index lenses ($25 for the frames, $50 for the higher index lenses). My prescription is moderately severe, -4.0 in each eye. In layman's terms, that means that anything more than 1 ft. away starts to get blurry. Definitely cannot see the big “E” at the top of the eye chart. Practically speaking, that means that ordering cheap lenses means they will be thick and more distorted at the edges. Spending extra on high-index results in thinner, lighter lenses and less distortion. I wanted to try a blue-blocking lens because of the supposed sleep benefits with reduced blue light, and also eye strain from looking at a computer (I work a desk job and stay up late watching TV). Lots of manufacturers have their own version of this. So with the order placed, but expectations pretty low, I waited. Delivery was scheduled to be 10-14 days after ordering. On the 11th day, they arrived.
The Review:
Optical quality: Putting on my new Zenni glasses a couple days ago, I had the familiar “wow” moment, when you update your prescription for the first time in a couple years and all of a sudden things come into focus again. Like the ones before weren’t bad, but all of a sudden small tree branches and the horizon are crisp again. I honestly expected there to be distortion around the edges, or imperfect clarity. But my immediate reaction is that these are good lenses, and I can see better than with my almost-identical but slightly out of date Oakleys. In fact, last time I updated my Oakleys, I specifically remember not being as impressed or having that “wow” moment. This was telling, as Oakley touts their Hi-def optics and manufacturing process.
Appearance: I bought a pair with perfectly matching dimensions to the Oakleys I’ve been wearing for the past 2 years. My wife didn’t even notice, and once I told her, she remarked she keeps forgetting they are different glasses. They lack the designer logo, but the cut is virtually identical. I can tell, but most people don’t stare that hard at your glasses.
Frame quality/ruggedness: here is where the Zenni brand suffers and designer frames shine. When held in the hand, the Zennis are clearly cheaply manufactured. They feel lightweight and flimsy. If you get hit in the face with a basketball or soccer ball, I feel like there’s a decent chance they could break. Meanwhile, my Oakleys have stood up to some serious abuse and drops and falls. That being said, once they are on my face, they feel and look like normal glasses. They aren’t meant to be held, they are meant to be worn. And if you aren’t playing impact sports or aren’t super rough on your glasses, you shouldn’t have a problem. I went out for a quick jog this morning just to see how well they held on, and they felt like normal glasses.
I added a $10 super-cheapo set from Zenni to my cart with low-index lenses that look pretty thick. But they work nicely as a backup pair just in case.
The cheap construction does have the benefit of also being lightweight, which is actually pleasant on the face. And unlike Oakley’s straight arm stems that grip to the side of your head, Zenni curve around the ear like most traditional frames. So they stay on without having to grip the side of your head quite as tight, which can also be fatiguing.
Lens mounting: the lenses in my half-rim glasses are solidly installed with no play, don’t feel like they will fall out at all.
Accessories: The Zennis came with a super-cheap, flimsy plastic case. I don’t buy my glasses for the case and this didn’t really matter to me. But it doesn’t scream “I’m a designer item” like my leather Oakley case. Which has been sitting in my basement collecting dust since purchase. Both included a microfiber cloth for cleaning.
Bottom line: I expected to be disappointed and was actually pleasantly surprised. Zenni offers higher index lenses than Oakley for lower cost. I will probably buy from them again in the future (after trying on similar frames in the store first to find a style I like).
Notable mention(I am not a shill, this is just my opinion on why you don't have to pay full retail for glasses to get quality. YMMV): Other popular online sites for discount eyewear include
Warby Parker: looks amazing, especially trying on the frames at home for a week for free. Only complaint is they specialize in full-frame glasses which make me look like a dork. I have to have half-frame. If you look good in full frames, these are a sleek way to go for a pretty good price.
$39 glasses: despite the name, the frames can go on up to a pretty penny considering it’s all online. Wanted to keep it super-cheap.
Eye Buy Direct: they look amazing. Only complaint was the dimensions on their semi-rimless are wider than what I like. I was going for a clone of my current set and they just didn’t have it.
Goggles 4 U: nothing even close to what I wanted in semi-rimless/size. Website less impressive than all of the competition.
Coastal: only some of their frames are cheap, and your search results will offer a lot of $100+ frames. Not what I’m looking for.
March 31, 2017 at 10:17AM
