Time for new spectacles. Advice/Tips/Recommendations

[Shake&Bake]

Its been overdue for the longest time.

And seeing that I'm on Medical Aid again, I'm actually making an attempt to use it this time round.
First, I just bought cash.
And then a friend whom I visited in the UK, an optometrist, sorted me out there a few years ago.

Now its time for myself and Discovery Medical Aid, Coastal Saver to do a transaction.

I google and all I really come across is SpecSavers' site.
Are they just the defacto people to go to?

I've got a smidgen under R2700 left on savings I could throw into this and a few bob more from my side if needed.
See that SpecSavers are having some R500 off deal till April...

 

[ld13]

I work at an optometrist and we love specsavers ... because so many of their clients end up right back on our stoep. But this of course differs from branch to branch, what laboratory they use and in a large sense what optometrist you land up with. R2700 could land you the eye test, a proper frame and a set of multifocal lenses that goes all dark in the sun (if you want) but you would probably need to negotiate with them for this. Expect to pay in quite a few bobs if you want to go for eg. branded Zeiss lenses.

Do you know what you are currently wearing?
Full-/Half-/Rimless frame? Single vision (readers/distance specs) / Bifocal (the one with the line) / Multi-focal?

 

[Shake&Bake]

I work at an optometrist and we love specsavers ... because so many of their clients end up right back on our stoep. But this of course differs from branch to branch, what laboratory they use and in a large sense what optometrist you land up with. R2700 could land you the eye test, a proper frame and a set of multifocal lenses that goes all dark in the sun (if you want) but you would probably need to negotiate with them for this. Expect to pay in quite a few bobs if you want to go for eg. branded Zeiss lenses.

Do you know what you are currently wearing?
Full-/Half-/Rimless frame? Single vision (readers/distance specs) / Bifocal (the one with the line) / Multi-focal?

Hi currently, half rim (the top) with the lenses that adjust according to the light.
Single vision, I take it
I'd preferably like to go with the same kind of lenses, but not the same frame.

Looking for the typical geek/nerd frame. If you follow me.
Brand name is of no interest to me.

 

[ld13]

Hi currently, half rim (the top) with the lenses that adjust according to the light.
Single vision, I take it

Single vision distance then, I would guess. As in, you use them for driving and not reading? Care to upload a pic of your current frame?

The selection of frames out there is quite astonishing. We tend to shy away from the whole branded frames thing as one can get the same quality stuff for less these days. I have ~R700 frames that can survive a freaking car driving over them... Most ranges these days try to cater for a large crowd and I have seen the younger market starting to move to the more thicker nerdy looking frames - but it is a trend that rears its head every few months in any case.

Not caring about branding is a good thing. It is sad to see people willing to dish out thousands on a frame, just because it has GUESS or whatever printed on the side. With lenses branding can make a bit of a difference though. But that has more to do with the model/type of lens in the end. Zeiss do indeed have an edge with some of their multifocal lenses when compared to a generic multofocal lens because they altered their lenses to allow for a wider reading area etc etc. But this will of course differ from lens to lens.

Mense, dis al 4am. Time for Zzz eksê...

 

[Shake&Bake]

Oops, perhaps an error on my end then I'm clueless I wear them all the time - for driving and reading.
They're just an extension of my life and I forget about them being on my face - as a couple of trips to the shower have shown me

You'll see they're pretty beaten up





Enjoy your sleep and thanks for your feedback - I'm still bumping around at the office for a couple of hours

EDIT: Jeez - didn't expect those pics to be that huge after upload
Almost too high-res for my liking

 

[superskully]

Torga has 2 for 1 specials. Problem is i did not want two!

 

[rrh]

I use plastic varifocals - the prescription is sent to Germany for manufacture.

They were a tad expensive but are half the weight of conventional glass lenses.

 

[hansotto]

I am a recently retired optometrist. They can produce very decent photochromic plastic varifocals locally (I am wearing some). No need to get them from Germany.

I use plastic varifocals - the prescription is sent to Germany for manufacture.

They were a tad expensive but are half the weight of conventional glass lenses.

 

[alexjay]

Been using Specs Savers St. George's Mall branch since 2005. Awesome service from the staff. One can use your Edgar's account.

 

[Hosehead]

. It is sad to see people willing to dish out thousands on a frame, just because it has GUESS or whatever printed on the side..

Although I don't wear glasses or contacts; I find it hysterical seeing age 50+ people wearing clothing brand names on their eyeglass frames. Such people willing to spend thousands not on a decent lens but on a fancy, rimless type plastic designer frame are a deluded lot. I mean who CARES (apart from the wearer) what name they have on their glasses. I don't go up to people grab their arm to stop them while I peer at the almost invisible fine print and say ohhhh your Glasses are Hugo Boss. Wow. I also see 50+ people trying to compensate for fading looks, turkey necks, long vanished hair and an impressive boep wearing "Trendy" frames you'd expect the younger GQ crowd to wear. I find it quite ridiculous seeing an older preson trying to make a fashion statement with glasses.
Once upon a time in the UK on the NHS you could have any size frame you liked as long as it was ugly and Black.

 

[Picard]

I got my my glasses from Specsavers 2 weeks ago. I also got another pair of prescription sunglasses for free. It was their summer special.

But I won't go to specsavers again.

Firstly, my previous optometrist (an old man) always gave me sound advice on the type of frame that suit my face and a lot of other suggestions regarding aethetics. At specsavers the optometrist (a young guy of about 27/28) just pointed me to the receptionist who was a 20yo girl who didn't offer any advice and when asked for her opion showed she knew nothing.

Do they always just point their customers to their display cabinets and say ... THERE ... choose yourself?

Also their range of glasses are ***. They have a thousand frames to choose from they are all crap. I wanted a gold frame but apparently the in fashion frames are mostly black and other similar dark coloured farmes. I eventually ordered a gold frame from their online catalog which turned out to be too wide for my face IMO. Everyone else says it's perfect but I'm not too convinced.

Thirldy they used a very low index lens so now it looks like I've got bottle bottoms for glasses. I never knew about the various indexes and would have preferred a higher index lens. I would have paid for it. But he never suggested anything. Now my peripheral vision is still not great even after my eyes has gotten used to the new lenses. If I look straight ahead the glasses are perfect but to the sides it's not.

For my next pair of glasses I'm going back to that old, quirky and eccentric man ... but who knows his stuff.

 

[Shake&Bake]

@ Picard - my first experience was similar to what you had. Was at N1 City all those years ago, but not Specsavers I think... Some other name I forget.

Felt a bit in limbo and didn't have the greatest service on the floor. After mulling about and finally seeing a frame I could get on with, the rest seemed rather rushed. Just happy that the frame and lenses made it all this way with me.

I would've dug some prescription sunglasses too, but whatever

 

[ld13]

Oops, perhaps an error on my end then I'm clueless I wear them all the time - for driving and reading.
They're just an extension of my life and I forget about them being on my face - as a couple of trips to the shower have shown me

Yep, those lenses have had better days... I see chips on the sides and it could do with some time in the ultrasonic machine. My suggestion would be to retire this pair and rather use them as your backup pair. I have seen multifocal lenses being confused with single vision specs lots of times. You can lift the lens up to a bright light and look for certain markings inside the lens:



You should be able to see a 2.25/225/1.75 or similar 3 digit add inside the lens and a type of logo or marking on the other side. The other way of identifying would be to hover the lens in front of your eyes and to bob them left and right - a multifocal lens should distort your image considerably:

I use plastic varifocals - the prescription is sent to Germany for manufacture.
They were a tad expensive but are half the weight of conventional glass lenses.

We barely do glass anymore. 99% of our patients opt for the plastic lenses when presented with the pros and the cons. You do still have that factory worker or two that want some "protective" glass lenses, but in the end we rather tend to suggest polycarbonate lenses above the glass lenses.

In certain cases where we have an extremely high prescription usually combined with a poor square frame choice (where a px ignores our recommendations of course and refuses lenticular lenses) we tend to have no other choice but to order some 1.74 index lenses from eg. Germany. But in most other cases we can source the lenses locally. There are more than enough laboratories scattered all over SA that are more than capable to provide one with high quality lenses.

I don't go up to people grab their arm to stop them while I peer at the almost invisible fine print and say ohhhh your Glasses are Hugo Boss. Wow.

I do. Kinda. But without the stopping and arm grabbing. When you work with these things on a day to day basis you tend to recognize certain frames from a mile away and you know what is quality and what is not. Eg. I see nothing wrong with spending R3500 to buy a proper pair of silhouettes - I have seen these babies last 10+ years if handled properly. It works out the same as buying a proper R700 frame every 2 years. Each with their pros and their cons of course.

Firstly, my previous optometrist (an old man) always gave me sound advice on the type of frame that suit my face and a lot of other suggestions regarding aesthetics. At specsavers the optometrist (a young guy of about 27/28) just pointed me to the receptionist who was a 20yo girl who didn't offer any advice and when asked for her opinion showed she knew nothing. Do they always just point their customers to their display cabinets and say ... THERE ... choose yourself?
I eventually ordered a gold frame from their online catalog which turned out to be too wide for my face IMO. Everyone else says it's perfect but I'm not too convinced.

This is why we love specsavers.

We book out 45 minutes for the test and then spend about 15+ minutes to help the px with a frame. This is not something to be rushed imo as the px is the one that will be wearing them for the next 2+ years. The very first thing I tend to do is to just pop on the nearest frame to get a guesstimate about what size of frame and nose bridge size we are looking at. Thereafter it is a simple matter of providing the px with a choice between metal/plastic, full/semi/rimless, colour preferences ... and by that time you usually have the right frame.

Thirdly they used a very low index lens so now it looks like I've got bottle bottoms for glasses. I never knew about the various indexes and would have preferred a higher index lens. I would have paid for it. But he never suggested anything.

Any optometrist or even receptionist "wat sy sout werd is" would've seen that you will end up with thick glasses by just looking at your script. But unfortunately some people are just more sensitive to the thickness of their glasses, not saying that you are Picard. We have had a situation before where a patient freaked out because her lenses were "too thick" while we felt they were quite within normal parameters. In the end it is usually a moot point as the patient eg. paid R9k towards her previous set and ain't willing to pay in a dime above what the medical aid allows this time around and thus could not reasonably expect the 1.74 HRI imported lenses.

For my next pair of glasses I'm going back to that old, quirky and eccentric man ... but who knows his stuff.

This is what I love about our optometrist - he knows his stuff and knows what to recommend for various different ailments. Dry eyes is usually linked to dry skin in general - Try E45.

 

[diabolus]

I got my my glasses from Specsavers 2 weeks ago. I also got another pair of prescription sunglasses for free. It was their summer special.

But I won't go to specsavers again.

Firstly, my previous optometrist (an old man) always gave me sound advice on the type of frame that suit my face and a lot of other suggestions regarding aethetics. At specsavers the optometrist (a young guy of about 27/28) just pointed me to the receptionist who was a 20yo girl who didn't offer any advice and when asked for her opion showed she knew nothing.

Do they always just point their customers to their display cabinets and say ... THERE ... choose yourself?

Also their range of glasses are ***. They have a thousand frames to choose from they are all crap. I wanted a gold frame but apparently the in fashion frames are mostly black and other similar dark coloured farmes. I eventually ordered a gold frame from their online catalog which turned out to be too wide for my face IMO. Everyone else says it's perfect but I'm not too convinced.

Thirldy they used a very low index lens so now it looks like I've got bottle bottoms for glasses. I never knew about the various indexes and would have preferred a higher index lens. I would have paid for it. But he never suggested anything. Now my peripheral vision is still not great even after my eyes has gotten used to the new lenses. If I look straight ahead the glasses are perfect but to the sides it's not.

For my next pair of glasses I'm going back to that old, quirky and eccentric man ... but who knows his stuff.

Man, that's exactly my experience with Specsavers. I've been there a few times, they got my prescription and i simply ended up with contact lenses. Everytime i went back there to pick a frame, they pawn off the cashier who merely unlock the frames and stand around saying nothing. I mean geez, it costs a freaking fortune for glasses (they nail you with lenses though, so take it into consideration ) , and the least they can have is people who know how to judge a frame or give some basic feedback like "your face is round or oval, so frames like these tend to fit, and your hair colour/eye colour is like this, so frame colour like this".

I think the other problem with specsavers , they are very popular and very busy, so i expect things to slip through the cracks. If you know exactly what you want, then it's fine, but if you need some advice on frames, i've not been lucky at all. Their optometrists are fine i guess, i got a good type of contacts from them for my needs, but that was the actual optometrist, the frame picking is never the optometrist though.

I eventually went to another place, Value Vision (they are advertising on 702, with the 2 for 1 frames special thing) , dragged along a female friend to give some tips, and what do you know, the place is quiet enough that the lady behind the till , could actually come around and point out that certain frames are too wide for my face etc etc.

So i think, sometimes it's useful to check out the more quiet optometrists (even though their appointment book tend to full though).

Also, just another bit of advice, Discovery has deals with optometrists where they give 20% discount . Value Vision and Specsavers are in on this deal , also alot of the smaller optometrists, so ask about it first.

 

[satanboy]

Lindberg...best glasses I've ever had.

 

[Shake&Bake]

Well certainly a lot to consider.
Luckily my optometrist friend is arriving from Germany this week. I'll call on him to assist as well.

 

[naeem]

gonna be ordering a set online - its relatively cheap so worth an experiement
eyebuydirect.com

 

[ld13]

gonna be ordering a set online - its relatively cheap so worth an experiement

Tried out a similar site a while back - tested the lenses with our lensmeter/vertometer and found deviations in the script that fell outside our allowable standards. Never even got around to test the actual quality of the lens. Would suggest you take the specs to your nearest optometrist and spin them a story about struggling to adapt with your new specs and if they would be kind enough to check the script for you. Otherwise post them to me and I'll gladly test them for you.

Re: its relatively cheap
You can get that kind of pricing within the confines of your own country... probably better quality lenses as well.

 

[MickeyD]

Well certainly a lot to consider.
Luckily my optometrist friend is arriving from Germany this week. I'll call on him to assist as well.

Contact lenses?

And I agree with hansotto - plenty of good labs in South Africa.

 

[sgs]

It really does help to read up and 'know a bit' about lenses etc when you walk into the shop as well. That way you know what is possible and can ask straight out for it. Eg with things like varifocals, lens indexes, base curves etc. (Also helps to identify the guys who know what they talk about vs the chancers )

I had brilliant custom wraparound sunglasses made a few years back at Century Eyes in Century City. No one else was vaguely interested in attempting a high base curve sunglass frame, even though the lenses are out there and available. But these guys knew their stuff. Took a bit longer etc, but the end job was amazing. Was kind of hoping to go back there when my main pair of glasses died, but alas, they are no more :-(

(Ps: Where are these 'cheaper high quality non branded' frames? All I see stocked all over Cape Town is the Guesses, Polo's and Levis of this world...)