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At my last checkup, it was suggested I could go varifocal, but I found and still find my older slightly weaker prescription glasses work fine when I'm at the pc ~60cm from the monitor. The newer specs with a wrap around sunglasses frame, come into their own when I'm watching TV from ~4m away, plus unlike any glasses I've had for ~30 years actually work well on the road/gravel bikes.
This thread is reassuring as a new varifocal user.
I’ve worn reading / close up glasses for 6 years or so now and after my last eye test went decided to try varifocals.
I baulked at the optician’s price for their lenses (£565 for their top of the range, plus frames) so ordered new readers from them and went to the cheap glasses shop in town for varifocals.
5 weeks in and I’m on my second set of lenses and will be going back this weekend. The close up focal point is too narrow, low and distorted so whilst they work for viewing a phone screen they are near useless for screen work. Even reading a pub menu has me moving my head around in a fit to find the clear spot.
However I’m determined to persevere as I do now have a low prescription for distance vision and they’ve been a revelation when I’m out and about and I see a time coming when I need to wear glasses all the time including riding but I was coming to the conclusion that I need to ask the shop to go away from whoever their normal supplier is and find me a premium lense.
If you already have frames Lensology were good for me. £200 for 1.74 varifocals with wide field of vision.
This represents the difference quite well between best and Good --> https://lensology.co.uk/varifocal-lenses-buying-guide/?utm_term=&utm_campaign=Performance+Max&utm_source=adwords&utm_medium=ppc&hsa_acc=7257346223&hsa_cam=17569317580&hsa_grp=&hsa_ad=&hsa_src=x&hsa_tgt=&hsa_kw=&hsa_mt=&hsa_net=adwords&hsa_ver=3&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=22503603538&gbraid=0AAAAADs49FNAG3sqPISDbpnSuIkR1PvK_&gclid=Cj0KCQjwn8XFBhCxARIsAMyH8BuoCIYsIyNaziEvCn7hGB4HOIbVSQSRiF-rKBnrXcusd5JPyVeM5A4aAr9xEALw_wcB
This page seems to cover what you can and cant get from VE with regards to varifocals. I got the advanced option. I also paid for thinner lenses.
Varifocal lens options | Varifocals lens pricing | Vision Express
I've worn specs since childhood and varifocals for over 20 years. I use them for everything with no issues. I have a strong prescription (-10) and largely because of this I have always shelled out big bucks for high quality lenses. For a very long time Zeiss were the gold standard but my current pair highly recommended by my optician are Shamir. Apparently there is some vary clever machining going on whereby the prescription is partly the back surface and partly the front surface which I'm told was not always the case. Anyway they are brilliant but so were Zeiss and my take away is if you value your eyesight and want lenses which work pay for top quality and go to an optician who knows how to measure you properly and get the lenses correctly set up in your frames. That might mean that like me you may have to pay over £500 for lenses and frames, but it's your vision for God's sake and compromise doesn't come into it.
Oh and I don't quite the head movement thing. Because the prescription changes across the lens it's inevitable that your head has to move to look through the appropriate bit of the lens. It shouldn't be a conscious thing, you just do it.
Used to use bifocals from Specsavers and decided to give their varifocals a try and they were awful particularly for driving, ended up with single vision for driving and an old pair of reading glasses, at no time was I offered or advised of any different grade of lens. At my last eye test went to Boots on a recommendation and ended up with a top of the range Zeiss varifocal lens. Difference was night and day, couldn't be happier and now wear them all the time without a second thought. On a side note I'm sure I read somewhere than Specsavers operate franchises, so that could explain some differing opinions, all I know is I won't be back
Re the head movement - the worst experience was when looking for something in a shop. Normally my eyes would dart about scanning the shelves, but I can't move my head as fast as my eyes. Basically everywhere I looked was blurry.
... at no time was I offered or advised of any different grade of lens.
Most likely due to higher profit for the cheaper lens hence no need to offer you higher grade lens if you don't complain or can get use to cheap lens. I always ask and in the end ZEISS still come out the best.
That might mean that like me you may have to pay over £500 for lenses and frames, but it's your vision for God's sake and compromise doesn't come into it.
Mine is slightly less than £500 but includes a super doper German titanium frame (Menrad).
Also lighting is very important for if need to wear glasses to read or see.
I’ve been using varifocals for years. I agree standard varifocals that I wear all day are useless for computer use if ots
more than about 20 minutes. I got some occupational varifocals that only work across the range of an arms length, that’s how far my monitors are from me , and closer for writing in a notebook. These work brilliantly as they are only varying the focal point my 1 m so the focus area is large and the transition very gradual compared to my normal pair that work from infinity to reading focal lengths
^^^ that’s what I said in the 5th post on this thread too 🤪
I know about those and was told. The question is how functional should a generic pair of varifocals be? Should I be able to see more than a 10cm circle of a laptop screen?
I'm going back on Monday
I know about those and was told. The question is how functional should a generic pair of varifocals be? Should I be able to see more than a 10cm circle of a laptop screen?
I'm going back on Monday
that partly depends on your prescription and which varifocals lens you have opted for. Needless to say the more expensive are better. The stronger the prescription and the bigger difference between your distance and reading prescription the smaller the focal area is. If I use my normal varifocals on the computer then I do have to move my head round the screen a fair bit
Should I be able to see more than a 10cm circle of a laptop screen?
In compete contrast to the post above, I have expensive lenses as I explained previously and have no problems seeing monitors without consciously moving my head, so my answer is “yes, you should be able to see more than that” but you may need to talk to your optician to get them to explain why you should spend more money on two pairs of glasses to the things you need rather than one pair that does everything
The stronger the prescription and the bigger difference between your distance and reading prescription the smaller the focal area is.
Yes, I thought that would be the case. I'm -3.25 and -4.75. I'm not sure what the close up prescription is, however it may be a little too strong because whilst it's nice to be able to see pin sharp phone screen at 20cm distance, it's not really necessary and I might trade that for a wider field of view at 80cm distance. If I am wearing glasses and I need to see something really close up e.g. threading a needle etc, I can simply lift my glasses and hold the thing 10cm from my face. Of course these are compromises, but it's about finding the compromise I want.
This morning I've had a long breakfast now I'm on my way out to work on the car, but I stopped at the laptop to check in on STW and check the problem still exists after another day or two of wear. It does, but regarding digital lenses there's no way I would be digging out a different pair of glasses for a quick 5 min stop at a laptop.