Glasses Buying Cost Cutting Plan Article Discussion Area

lilykim

After a lot of thought and research I went to ASDA at the weekend and had my eyes tested. Having worn glasses since I was 4 ( I'm now 53) I have been to quite a few opticians in my time. I don't pay for my eye test because of a medical condition. It was the most thorough eye test I have ever had. I got one complete pair of modern frame variflocals for £95.00 and a second pair with a discount of £20 i.e. £75.00. All their glasses are a set price inclusive of lenses and frames. I don't know how much say a special reflective coating would cost. I was definetely very pleased with the customer service too. I know varifocals can be extremely expensive so I think I got a good bargain.

DatabaseError

Thanks for the reply. yep, we tried some of your specs before noticing the prescription problem, one of the things we're considering is the frames from you, lenses from someone else, but the "reglazing" fees put me off - tight northerner that I am.
The lens question was really more "how much thinner are the 1.74 lenses to the 1.67, I suppose the answer is very much dependant upon both prescription and frame, with such bad eyes I suppose we ought not be tight and pay the extra few quid

wow - just checked the - you've actually sold out of the frames..so that's kinda good news

Frankthesurf

Anyone know of discounts/deals (NOT WEB BASED) for varifocals??

GlasweJen

I can only give 2 companies off the top of my head.

Asda are doing complete varifocals at £110, the lens they are using isn't the best on the market but it isn't the worst either (low to middle range), you can't choose which varifocal lens you get but it does have an MAR coating.

Optical express do a free 2nd pair of varis, their lenses start at (i think) £149 for varifocals (without coatings, it's another £40 for MAR) plus the cost of the frame. They do a 15% discount for over 60s, students and people who work for certain companies as well.

opticalassasin

loudcloud wrote: »

I work for a large High Street optician. While I agree totally with Martin and the savings that can be had online, I feel that I must voice some concerns with using such services.

Firstly, “Pupiliary Distance” or PD. Using a mirror to take this measurement is a good idea. The problem arises when you have a mid to high prescription.

When you Sphere, or sph for short, is greater than 2.50 then having this measurement out by more than 1.0 of a millimeter can create something called prism. This can cause dizziness, headaches and sickness, as well as poor vision.

With the PD the higher the prescription the more accurate it needs to be.

Secondly, when you have a prescription of 4.00 or more you also need to know your pupil height. This is the distance from the lowest point of the frame to the center of the pupil. This measurement can only be taken when the person is wearing the frame.

If this measurement is out you might have similar problems to above.

For these reasons I would be very careful when using such services if you have a high prescription. A small amount of prism can greatly affect your vision.


Thirdly, on the subject of Varifocals and Bifocals. I would have to say stick to your optician. These lenses need a lot of measurements. These measurements require the customer to ware the frame that they have chosen so that the exact position of the pupil can be taken in relation to the lowest point on the frame.

Feel free to contact me with your questions or opinions to anything I have posted here.


Lastly, the frame it’s self. Yes it looks good on the screen. But how do you know it fits?? What with bridge do you need so that the lenses sit ether side of your nose not in front of it? How wide is your head? How far back are your ears? These are all things that your High Street optician will be asking and looking at.

Hi

I also work in a large high street optician and i agree that Pd's can be hugely important on higher prescriptions over +or- 6 generally is a more sensible number heights is a recent thing which has'nt been done consistently in opticians for years. The other thing to point out is in a lot of the main high street opticians the staff don't stay long so the measurements are taken by trainee's including heights. I have time and again remade glasses supposedly measured by dispensing opticians and optical advisors alike from all of the major retailers so yes sometimes you get what you pay for but sometimes you get the same no matter what you pay.Dont ever buy your varifocals or bifocals online as a badly measured pair of glasses is better than a guessed pair of glasses and you can get them checked while you are there but in the most part as long as your prescription is not too high you are ok to buy online ,the other thing you can do is think about just buying your frame online and get your lenses fitted instore.

Thanks for listening

Optical assasin

opticalassasin

loudcloud wrote: »

I work for a large High Street optician. While I agree totally with Martin and the savings that can be had online, I feel that I must voice some concerns with using such services.

Firstly, “Pupiliary Distance” or PD. Using a mirror to take this measurement is a good idea. The problem arises when you have a mid to high prescription.

When you Sphere, or sph for short, is greater than 2.50 then having this measurement out by more than 1.0 of a millimeter can create something called prism. This can cause dizziness, headaches and sickness, as well as poor vision.

With the PD the higher the prescription the more accurate it needs to be.

Secondly, when you have a prescription of 4.00 or more you also need to know your pupil height. This is the distance from the lowest point of the frame to the center of the pupil. This measurement can only be taken when the person is wearing the frame.

If this measurement is out you might have similar problems to above.

For these reasons I would be very careful when using such services if you have a high prescription. A small amount of prism can greatly affect your vision.


Thirdly, on the subject of Varifocals and Bifocals. I would have to say stick to your optician. These lenses need a lot of measurements. These measurements require the customer to ware the frame that they have chosen so that the exact position of the pupil can be taken in relation to the lowest point on the frame.

Feel free to contact me with your questions or opinions to anything I have posted here.


Lastly, the frame it’s self. Yes it looks good on the screen. But how do you know it fits?? What with bridge do you need so that the lenses sit ether side of your nose not in front of it? How wide is your head? How far back are your ears? These are all things that your High Street optician will be asking and looking at.

Hi

I also work in a large high street optician and i agree that Pd's can be hugely important on higher prescriptions over +or- 6 generally is a more sensible number heights is a recent thing which has'nt been done consistently in opticians for years. The other thing to point out is in a lot of the main high street opticians the staff don't stay long so the measurements are taken by trainee's including heights. I have time and again remade glasses supposedly measured by dispensing opticians and optical advisors alike from all of the major retailers so yes sometimes you get what you pay for but sometimes you get the same no matter what you pay.Dont ever buy your varifocals or bifocals online as a badly measured pair of glasses is better than a guessed pair of glasses and you can get them checked while you are there but in the most part as long as your prescription is not too high you are ok to buy online ,the other thing you can do is think about just buying your frame online and get your lenses fitted instore.

Thanks for listening

Optical assasin

tonyg_2

I have tried 2 opticians and neither managed to make a pair of glasses that were optically as good as my existing 10 year old glasses. I am very shortsighted and have a couple of other complications.

Can anyone recommend a genuinely specialised optician in the Hertforshire/london/ cambridge area who will really spend a long time investigating and helping me get a pair of glasses that will work optically?

Thank you in advance.

Jnelhams

My perscription is classed as Complex by the NHS as it is over -10 so I qualify for a free perscription and a £10 voucher towards the costs!

I have used Optical4less now for several years, and they get it right the only down side is the frames are not always long lasting.

If you know anyone going to India on holiday for a week or two, ask them to get you a pair made up, I've had some done by friends in the past this way and they worked out dirt cheap and excellent quality. - Mine in the UK cost more than £400 for a basic frame yet about £30-£70 in India, and £100 on line from Optical4less. Now that's a saving :money:

Jnelhams

tonyg wrote: »

I have tried 2 opticians and neither managed to make a pair of glasses that were optically as good as my existing 10 year old glasses. I am very shortsighted and have a couple of other complications.

Can anyone recommend a genuinely specialised optician in the Hertforshire/london/ cambridge area who will really spend a long time investigating and helping me get a pair of glasses that will work optically?

Thank you in advance.

If you can find a big Boots store, rather than an Old Ex-Dolland store, they have good computerised equipment (you look at this little House on a computer screen) that works out the perscription in seconds, and then is double checked with you in a normal session with the optician.

esseesee

What ticks me off with most of these on-line places is that the only way to discover that they don't do your prescription is to start all the faff of ordering solely to discover that the supplier doesn't even acknowledge the existence of your level of vision defect. Even looking in the FAQs doesn't help.

The high street stores here are no better. 'Two pairs for £69!!' 'Fashionable specs only £15!'
Bah! This is true only if your vision defect is so slight that you need to be persuaded (by low prices) that you need to wear glasses ...

With a prescription of -13.5 dioptres (but stunningly healthy, easy-to-correct eyes and excellent vision once corrected) I have been quoted £300 upwards just for reasonable-quality hi-index lenses here in the UK - and that is taking into account all the vouchers for which I am eligible.

Oddly, two years ago when I lived in Australia, the test, virtually the same prescription with hi-index (1.9) Hoya lenses and the frame, done at a local (not chain!) optician cost me $360 total, with no contribution from Medicare (owing to my visa status) and included a more thorough eye test than I got here. I have today emailed my old optician in Oz with a copy of my new prescription to ask if he can supply ... even with the very unfavourable present exchange rate it will be considerably cheaper than here, and he has information about vertex, PD and all the other bits'n'bobs which are so important for a strong prescription like mine.

Most opticians are a RIP-OFF and always have been since I started wearing glasses over 55 years ago. If a person cannot walk right they are not just sold a crutch at a high price, then shoved out of the door and told to get on with it but if a person can't see right what happens ...?