Optical4less
"The world's leading discounted prescription eyeglasses store online"
http://www.optical4less.com

Coupon Codes: (provided by Optical4less for this site - enter exactly as shown during checkout)

http://www.rtgenterprises.com - 5% off all purchases - (expires in 2011)

www.eyeglassretailerreviews.com/ - $10 off $100 - (expires in 2011)

Strengths:

• Product Quality - over the years, most input I found from others really indicated the quality of their glasses was high - particularly the lenses
• High Indexes - with indexes up to 1.8 and 1.9, they offer some of the thinnest glasses for those with high prescriptions
• Tint/color options - both solid and gradient tints with 9 color options in 3 intensities, as well as a mirror-coating are offered

Introduction:

Optical4less is located in Hong Kong. Pricing in USD. They sell single-vision, bi-focal, and progressive glasses, as well as a minor selection of contact lenses. Their only methods of contact are via on-line forms for which you have to register. They accept Visa, MasterCard, AmEx, and Paypal. Being located outside of the US, they are not listed with the BBB.

Impressions:

Optical4less has historically had a focus on quality. Their prices have never been the absolute lowest, but they maintained a competitive level at $29.00, complete with AR, anti-scratch, and UV coatings . At the time of this writing, they also have some "overstock" specials at $15. They offer some of the highest index (thinnest) lens's available, at a higher price - all the way up to an index of 1.9 which is a plus for people with strong prescriptions who don't like thick glasses. They also have one of the largest tint selections for those wanting tinted glasses - 9 different colors, each in 3 different intensities, as well as a "gradient" tint with the same colors - all together, that leads to 54 different possible tints. You can also put a "mirror coating" on any of them. Their website is fully featured, full of information, but lacks polish in certain areas.

The majority of their metal and plastic frames are $29.00 which includes single-vision lenses. They offer a variety of other frames (rimless, titanium, bendable, hingeless etc) but they generally cost between $10-30 more depending on what your're looking for. The majority of their frames are offered in 2-6 different colors which vary depending on the frame selected.

Single-vision lenses come free with the frame. There are 4 different index's for single-vision plastic lenses from 1.56-1.74 (one of which is polycarbonate), and 2 very-high-indexes for single-vision glass lenses (1.8 and 1.9). Progressive lenses top out at a 1.67 index, and include a polarized version. Photochromic lenses are offered in 7 different colors for single-vision lenses, and 2 colors for progressives. As mentioned earlier, they have a massive tnt selection including a mirror coating option. There's also an "anti-radiation" coating available which is supposed to block some of the rays emmitted by computer screens and TV's. Lens brands listed include AS Hi-Max®, GIA®, DAGAS®, PRECISION®, Appolosoft®, and GN®.

Website and Ordering:

The Optical4less website is fairly easy to navigate. Some things are likely to cause unnecessary confusion for first-time buyers though at first glance. The information's great - it's the presentation that could use work. Aside from that, the browsing experience is quite good. It's easy to narrow down what you're looking for, there's plenty of information about each frame, and a "Try It" feature where you can see how frames look on different faces. There are built-in ones, or you're also able to upload your own photo which I tested, and it works. However, you have to make sure the image you upload is the right size, as the built-in resize option is a little limited in scope, so getting your uploaded image to be the right size is going to take a little trial-and-error on your part.

Going through the order process is pretty easy. Choosing a frame color automatically changes it in the display. Measurements are shown as well. When choosing a lens type, clicking on the link brings up excellent information about what prescriptions each lens is suited for, where your prescriptions strength "fits in", and in some cases, pros and cons about the particular lens.

A final note to mention, while I don't have concerns about their glasses offerings or business, I'd tend to shy away from the contact lens offerings. There aren't a lot, but their contact lens page has google ads on it, which tends to indicate a retailer plans to make more by directing people elsewhere than by actually selling the product itself.

Pricing and Value:

Single-vision glasses come to $29.00 complete with AR, scratch-resistant, and UV coatings. Bi-focals and progressives come to $92.00 and also include AR, scratch-resist, and UV. Tint, gradient tint, mirror-coatings, and photochromic lenses are all options for an additional cost.

$29.00 gets you glasses with coatings from a place that's been known for it's quality for quite some time. For those who are looking for particularly high index glasses, there really aren't that many places that offer the 1.8 and 1.9 index's that Optical4less does. Finally, the tint, gradient tint, mirror coating, and photochromic color options here are extremely large compared to most others. All-in-all, they really seem to cater both to those looking for quality glasss on the low end of the price spectrum, those looking for special tint/lens colors, and those who want/need high index's that have trouble finding them elsewhere.

Pricing shown is for the basic frames. Other frames are available (bendable, hingeless, titanium, rimless, etc) but are not shown in this chart.

Click here to go to the old Optical4less information page

Click here to go to the old Optical4less review page

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