I recently visited my ophthalmologist for my semi-annual checkup. I had cataract surgery last September and my right eye has been slowly undergoing a slight reshaping since the surgery. My left eye hadn't changed, but the eyeglass prescription for my right eye wasn't quite right anymore.
The optometrist put me through the usual "which is better, number one...or number two?" routine and I walked out with a copy of my new prescription. As I left, he said that the new prescription wasn't a lot different from the old, so I needed to think about whether the slight change justified the expense of a new pair of glasses.
I got my last pair of glasses a couple of years ago at Wal-Mart, figuring that they'd be less expensive than the optician who rented space from my ophthalmologist. They probably were, but a set of progressive lenses still set me back $380.
I'd like to see what kind of difference this new prescription makes, but I'm not interested in paying several hundred bucks for the privilege. Then I remembered a column I had seen in the Buffalo News at the end of May. The columnist had purchased her new glasses online, and loved them! She had "...picked out a middle-of-the-road pair, with sturdy polycarbonate lenses, anti-reflective and anti-scratch coatings and ultraviolet protection. I even splurged on clip-on sunshades. The grand total with shipping? $24.95!"
Well, she had my attention. Before continuing, here's the link to her column:
http://www.buffalonews.com/business/moneysmart/discount-diva/article438069.ece
This seemed like a way to try out my new prescription, and not break the bank account so I created an account for myself at zennioptical.com.
One might wonder just how difficult it is to order your own glasses having your prescription in your hands. Turns out it's not hard at all.
All optical prescriptions are written exactly the same way. They are like little spreadsheets. The columns are headed "Sphere," "Cylinder," "Axis," "Add," and "Prism."
There are two rows of numbers with the first being for the right eye and the one under it the left eye. There will be numbers in most (but not necessarily all) cells of the spreadsheet. Ordering glasses simply involves copying these numbers into the online form.
Well, there is one complication. The "pupillary distance," which is the distance from the center of one pupil to the other--measured in millimeters--is required when ordering glasses. The nice folks where you have your eyes examined probably won't tell you what that number is. This is the "hook" they use to try to coerce you to purchase glasses through them.
Then I remembered what the technician at Wal-Mart did when I brought in my prescription. He took out a ruler, told me to look straight ahead and used the ruler to measure the distance between my pupils. Here is the perfect opportunity for a spouse to be really useful. It took my wife all of 5 minutes to come up with this measurement.
When I went online to order my new glasses, I had to begin with the frames. They begin at $6.95 and go up to $39.95. I opted for a nice aviator-style frame for $12.95.
Next come the lenses. Turns out progressive (no-line) lenses add $21.95 to the price. (That's a total of $21.95, not for each lens.) The anti-scratch coating is free, so I threw caution to the winds and added the anti-reflection coating for a whopping $4.95.
Adding in a set of clip-on polarized sunshades for $3.95 and shipping for $4.95 my total had grown to $48.75. (They throw in a hard case and microfiber cleaning cloth for free.) I could live with this.
They estimate most orders are delivered (via US mail) in about 2 weeks. I've been tracking mine, and at the one week mark they have been manufactured. I should get them in about a week.
If they're just "OK," I'll have an extra pair of glasses for less than $50. If I see a marked difference, I may go ahead and splurge on a pair with fancier frames and polycarbonate lenses. That might set me back a whopping $85. Suddenly Wal-Mart is looking pretty pricey!
As you read in the column, she was very happy with her glasses. I'll let you know how I feel when they arrive.
UPDATE (July 18): My new glasses arrived today, exactly 2 weeks after I ordered them online. The verdict: They're great!
The right lens is different enough from my old prescription that I see a definite improvement. The frames are nice and sturdy and feel good. In addition, the sides of the frames are able to adjust by about a quarter of an inch to put the earpieces right where they need to be. (My $100 frames from Wal-mart don't have this feature.) I'm giving Zenni Optical two "thumbs up!"
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