Has anyone purchased prescription glasses / sunglasses from an online store such as iframes or vision direct? They seem quite a bit cheaper than the optical stores but I’m just concerned about the quality, fitting and after sale service.
Online Prescription Glasses
LXE3 on 10/04/2018 - 13:20
Comments
i use clearly with no problems
The reason they are cheaper is because the retail stores have ridiculous markups.
I use Zenni and never a problem.
I used Clearly for my last specs. Multifocals with all the options - superslim index, anti this 'n' that coating.
Should've been around $360, but they had a 50% off for first time buyers.If I had've bought from bricks & mortar shop, would've been well in excess of $500, obviously depending on price of frame too.
I've used a few of them, both to get new glasses, but also to replace the lenses in an existing frame. The only tricky bit is working out your pupil distance (PD). You can try asking your optometrist for this distance, but they probably won't want to give this information out because they want you to buy in store and not go online. There are plenty of methods for working out this distance, so just google it. Just make sure you work out your PD for the right purpose as your PD will vary for short distance vs long distance focus.
In terms of retailers, I've used clens.com.au and ausspecs.com.au. Had some minor issues with Clens where I had some circular micro-scratches in my glasses that looked like some dirt or grit in the manufacturing machine. I returned the frame and they were remade without any dramas.
They have to if you ask
I've asked before and they have refused to give me this figure, so I'm curious where you've seen it stated that they need to give you this number? Typically you get your prescription from the optometrist but this doesn't include PD. Then the sales rep measures your PD after having chosen a frame and ordered the glasses.
Anyway, I worked out my PD by getting the missus to put a dot on my old glasses with a texta where the centre of my pupil was and this seemed to work fine.
Oh yeah Ur right
The article is a few years old, but Choice did some analysis on this: https://www.choice.com.au/health-and-body/optical-and-hearin…
For my part, I'd rather go to a B&M store.
Used Vision Direct recently, took some time, but very impressed with glasses.
I have to ask.. how on Earth do you know how the glasses will look on you? This is the main thing preventing me from ordering online.. at least a B&M store has mirrors I can use to see how it looks.
I usually go to Specsavers because I get the two pairs deal but this time I only need one pair (I lost my sunnies yesterday). I had a look and the range is small and expensive. Out of the store I tried a pair of Ray Bans that I love but Specsavers doesn’t sell them so I started looking at options. I can get the frame I like online for $133 which is way less than a sunglasses store and if I get them with the script I’ll get a health fund refund and also be eligible for a TRS rebate (maybe).
Several online stores allow you to take a quick selfie sans glasses and upload it. Then any frame you choose can be sort of superimposed on your face. Sure it's not exactly looking the mirror buy hey for the much cheaper price its about the best they can do. Clearly does this from recollection.
Some stores also allow you to receive a few frames without lens & send the ones back you don't like.Or just go into a shop(s), find something you like & get something really similar online.
And getting the PD…I tried all kinds of methods to get this correct on my own. None of them were accurate - fortunately I already had it from prior prescriptions.
I simply found glasses of the same type of style and sizing as my existing glasses, so minor differences were not noticeable. For getting glasses for the first time or changing styles you might be better off going into a store and trying on various pairs yourself and noting down the details. Some online stores will also loan you various empty frames for you to try on and return before purchasing so you can see how they fit.
how do the online stores measure your face, etc?
Vision direct is fine