tac lenses vs polycarbonate
Polycarbonate was adapted for use in eyeglass lenses in response to demand for lightweight, impact-resistant lenses. Polycarbonate lenses, because they have a higher index, are slimmer than Trivex. Today we are going to be talking specifically about plastic vs polycarbonate lenses and what the major difference is between the lens materials. Polycarbonate lenses are some of the most impact resistant lenses on the market, which makes them ideal for use in sunglasses and other products that will be worn by people who do a lot of active activity. Your professional optician can discuss the pros and cons of polycarbonate and Trivex lenses so you Because they are less likely to fracture than regular plastic lenses, polycarbonate lenses also are a good choice for rimless eyeglasses. Go for it. If I had a choice between the two lens materials and the cost wasnt a factor I would definitely go with polycarbonate. Obviously my prescription is higher each time so I expected them to be thicker, hence buying what I thought was a thinner lens! The price is also dependent on extras, add-ons, and coatings. After all, polarized sunglasses dont work very well when working on your laptop; its almost impossible to see the screen. For the best eye protection at work and during sports, be sure you also Polycarbonate ranks lowest for lens materials in chromatic aberration called Abbe value, which shows the ability of the material to disperse light. Introduced in the 1980s, they're incredibly lightweight and about 20% thinner than regular plastic lenses. playing sports while wearing an eyeglass frame that is not rated for Youre absolutely right! Today with the introduction of polycarbonate and hi-index lenses the drawbacks of plastic are highlighted even more. Could this still be plastic or is this polycarbonate? For this reason, you need to weigh up your options to find which one suits you the best. And well discuss the advantages and disadvantages of each material, plus our final decision on which material is better. These lenses are up to 30% thinner than regular plastic or glass lenses. Is what theyve told me true? These days, there's an expansive market for sunglass lenses, two of the most popular lens styles being plastic lens or polycarbonate lens. Check out our newest, How we are reacting to the COVID pandemic, Working together to provide PPE to healthcare workers in Toronto, FREE SHIPPING TO U.S. & CANADA ON ORDERS OVER $100. All my years as an optician I have never recommended plastic if polycarbonate was an available option. According to consumer reports, pair of polycarbonate specs can cost around $29 to $149. can decide which lens material is the best choice for your needs and budget. Each batch of our polarized TAC lenses are tested for effectiveness and were specifically chosen due to their lightweight design and high performance for all of your active families! Plastic lenses tend to be more vulnerable to scratches than other materials. Polycarbonate lenses are available in a wider variety of lens designs (e.g., progressive lenses and other multifocals) than Trivex lenses. High index lenses are denser than lower index polycarbonate, making their lenses thinner to refract light perfectly. Plastic lenses can accept tint colors for the people that like a light tint on their lenses. I will send you an email to help you with this. Polycarbonate lens didnt truly gain traction among the optical industry until more recently due to various problems with the material clarity and manufacturing. sports, choosing impact-resistant eyeglass lenses and frames is an 1.0 out of 5 stars 1 rating. The light . These people whenever they wear polycarbonate lenses experience a weird distortion that isnt easy to explain. Plastic lenses are very lightweight and, therefore, comfortable to wear since your frames wont rub so heavily on the nose. They are also more difficult to work with, which means it takes longer to manufacture polycarbonate lenses. RELATED:How to clean your glasses the right way. Plastic lenses have a higher Abbe value than polycarbonate. Warby Parker has stylish, high-quality frames at affordable prices. Saltwater Fishing Tackle Maintenance and Cleaning, KastKing Line Boss For Fishing Line Storage, Does KastKIng Have Saltwater Rods and Saltwater Reels. Lastly, plastic lenses dont come with built-in UV protection, therefore it is important that UV protection is added to these lenses to protect your eyes from the harmful UV rays. Ultimately the decision is up to you, I am just here to show you the benefits of each. Let me know below! Both are extremely strong, but polycarbonate is very susceptible to scratches unless it comes with an added film; that being said, theyre shatterproof. Whether youre driving your car or walking down the street, you still want to protect your eyes. The frames tend to be less than durable, so the glasses are so cheap. Polycarbonate is an excellent choice for people with a strong prescription. Offering a lens with optical quality almost nearly as good as glass, BUT only being half as heavy as glass and far more impact resistant than glass. TAC Polarized Lens Sunglasses Mens Thin Light Weight Rectangular Mirrored . It boasts the highest impact resistance of any lens material. Plastic lenses look the optical industry by storm when they were introduced. Polycarbonate lenses are about 10% thinner than Trivex lenses. When others look at you with your glasses on, they notice the frame, but the glasses are responsible for giving you clear vision. Today's modern 2-16 FAYUEN ST MONGKOK Triacetate (TAC) TAC lenses are light and thin, they are also tough and flexible. Important Factors to Consider While Choosing Lenses, Prescription Range is an Essential Factor, Thickness and Weight gets Affected by Lens Material. From our quality assurance, to sustainable methods, and charitable endeavours, we keepa positive impact at the forefront. Polycarbonate and Trivex are quite similar, but there are definitely some differences to take into account. Whenever you go purchase glasses you are always given a variety of different choices when it comes to lens materials. Here are some of our favourites! Boll Bolt 2.0 Titanium Volt+ Ultraviolet Polarised, Boll Bolt 2.0 S Creator Green Volt+ Gun Polarised, Boll Bolt 2.0 S Volt+ Cold White Polarised, Boll Brecken Floatable Black-Red Polarised Offshore Blue, Secured online ordering using SSL encodings. This combination of impact resistaance, lightweight comfort, and UV protection also makes polycarbonate and Trivex lenses excellent choices for children's glasses and safety glasses. Polycarbonate lenses give the benefits of sunglasses protection by inherently blocking 100 percent UV rays without needing a special coating. | An In-Depth Guide, What is the Best Plastic Glue? Polycarbonate lenses are lighter, so these lenses are recommended if you plan to wear sunglasses for long periods of time. scratch-resistant coatings can make the surface of polycarbonate and What kind of lenses do you have in your glasses? Polycarbonate lenses have a high refractive index, which means they can be a thinner and more lightweight solution for your prescription, when compared to plastic lenses of the same power. sports eyewear is dangerous and can result in a serious eye injury if Fast forward to modern-day, plastic lenses are still the most popular lens material because it does still have many benefits though it does have some downsides to it as well. Women Sunglasses But lifestyle sunglasses also need impact protection. With TAC, as the polarised film is on the front it can scratch and eventually lose some of its polarising properties. Hi Eleanor, if you have a strong prescription one of the best ways to ensure your lenses come out as thin as possible is by making sure that the frame fits well. sport eyeglasses. "}},{"@type":"Question","name":"Is there a big difference between 1.67 and 1.74 high-index lenses? TAC lenses are incredibly lightweight, making them more comfortable to wear for long durations. Availability. High index lenses are denser than polycarbonate lenses, meaning they have thinner lenses to reflect light properly. These lenses guard your eyes against UVA and UVB sun rays. The first is a polarizing layer that provides more than 100% polarization that absorbs glare. Additionally, they have a superior level of impact resistance and are suggested for both children's glasses and safety eyewear. the frame breaks, dislodging the lenses. Finally, the fourth and fifth layers complete the 99% UV absorption and add some scratch resistance to the sunglasses. This is where polarized lenses come in handy because they have a filter specially made to block this glare. Polycarbonate lens is lighter and thinner than glass, making it more comfortable to wear for long durations. All About Vision does not provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Outside of writing, Lauren runs a small farm with her husband and their four big dogs. Sagar Habib, a certified plastics engineer, and aficionado. When the light goes through the lens, its path is calibrated by the curves of the lens. Many people get confused about the differences. Join today, share your Oakley collection or even find new Oakley sunglasses for sale. Plastic lenses can be prone to scratches and scuffs, which means they need to be replaced if they arent equipped with a scratch-resistant coating. However, glass lenses are heavy (typically sliding down your nose) and can be dangerous: glass lenses are prone to cracking, can shatter with impact or if dropped on a hard surface such as concrete. And that reason is impact protection. Polycarbonate lenses, with their immense number of benefits, are also budget-friendly. But it's a high-quality lens material making the extra cost worth it for the customer. The thin metal temples and silicon tips at the end of each arm provide stability, while remaining lightweight enough to be worn all day longwithout overwhelming your face. ($45 vs $55) They are also available in more styles of sunglasses that cannot use glass lenses. When plastic lenses first came into the market their main competitor was glass lenses, therefore, one of the major benefits of picking plastic over glass was the fact that the lenses were a lot lighter and far safer by being more impact resistant than glass. They offer a higher refractive index and are incredibly strong and durable, which makes them ideal for use in products such as glasses that need to be thin enough to fit comfortably on someones face but also need to be able to withstand regular wear and tear. Before I move on to the advantages and disadvantages, its worth noting that you can have more than seven layers in TAC lenses. Half as heavy as glass, and far less likely to shatter, the optical quality is nearly as good as glass. Polycarbonate lenses are extremely popular in the lens market. Therefore, But dont forget that the primary purpose of sunglasses is to protect your eyes and keep you comfortable during all of your outdoor activities. Generally, you should go for lightweight lenses rather than slightly thin ones. Now I will be adding lense material to the list. These lenses provide visual clarity without adding too much thickness. One such type of lens was made from CR39 plastic, which is still widely used today. It's highly impact-resistant and famous for standing up to forces that would shatter other materials. It may not display this or other websites correctly. Polycarbonate lenses are very resistant to tint compared with plastic lenses which accept tints. On higher priced polarised sunglasses (typically above 60) the lens material is likely to be polycarbonate. Polycarbonate lenses are more expensive than plastic glasses. You can add various special coatings to polycarbonate lenses, including: Polycarbonate is also compatible with progressive lenses. Bottomline Benefits: Polycarbonate Vs High Index Lenses . 1.74 index lenses are the thinnest high-index lenses. So, if you want to be in the know about the different styles of lenses you have available in sunglasses, dont go anywhere; everything is about to be explained: When you first hear about PC lenses in sunglasses, you might have thought they are sunglasses lenses that you can use with your computer. And if you combine them with a lightweight frame material like titanium or nylon, youre set for a full day of comfortable wear. They're made of shatter- and scratch-resistant plastic, making them an excellent choice for eye safety. However, its important to recognise that plastic can still shatter and does not provide a high level of impact protection, so it should not be used for most active or shooting sports. Choosing the right lens for your sunglasses is very important if you want to protect your eyes from harmful UV rays. So Ill try my best to analyze both materials. The combination of impact and UV light protection makes polycarbonate the best choice for both lifestyle and sports sunglasses. I never knew the difference in the material til now A higher index of refraction also means denser material and therefore thinner lenses. The truth is that our eyes cant really detect the difference in clarity between glass and high-quality polycarbonate. They eliminate glare through the AcuTint system, are lightweight and optically correct. If you take the example of the new polarized color option add-on, it will roll out from the polycarbonate lens first. ","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"1.67 index lenses are ideal for prescriptions under +5.00/-8.00 and astigmatism correction between -3.00 and -4.00. Here is a brief comparison of polycarbonate and Trivex lenses to help you decide which lenses might be best for you: Thickness. Engaging Read Trivex VS Polycarbonate | The Definitive Guide. Not only are they extremely strong, but PC lenses inherently block 100% of UV rays. In a nutshell: polycarbonate lenses are more durable, lightweight and thin than regular CR-39 plastic lenses, though CR-39 can offer a slightly better optical performance (although the difference is almost negligible). However, the added durability of the polycarbonate material means that these glasses should hold up much better for everyday use than your average plastic lenses. Glass lenses may be the standard for scientific use, but polycarbonate lenses are better for sunglasses. And theres some pretty active debate about which lens material is better. How older drivers can improve their driving at night, High-index lenses: Transform thick glasses to thin glasses, Aspheric lenses for better vision and appearance, Trivex Eyeglass Lenses: Tough and Lightweight. HO KING COMM CTR You are using an out of date browser. Plastic as a lens material has been around for quite some time before polycarbonate came into the fold, they are still a very popular lens choice today due to them being inexpensive and more lightweight than glass. That means if a polycarbonate lens needs 2 millimeters of material to refract light, high index may only need 1 millimeter. Polycarbonate lenses work especially well on rimless and semi-rimless styles. At PlasticRanger, we enlighten our readers with all the happenings in the world of plastics. Contacted as you seen on tv.co.nz . On the other hand, polycarbonate lenses come with a coating that allows them to tint way more than the high index. Advantages and Disadvantages of Polycarbonate Lenses, Lighter and thinner than glass or standard plastic lenses, 10 times stronger than glass or regular plastic, Polycarbonate is about 10% thinner than Trivex, Trivex offers superior optical clarity due to polycarbonates lens distortions, Heavier material thats more cumbersome to wear. Liingo Eyewear is another great option to buy glasses online. But if your polycarbonate lenses do break, they are less likely to shatter into small, harmful pieces. Lighter and thinner high index lenses are highly recommended for you if you have a prescription for farsightedness or astigmatism and nearsightedness. Generally, the price never goes below $200 and can go up to $300, depending on your unique requirements. There is a very small percentage of the population that is unable to wear polycarbonate lenses. Lightweight and thinner than glass lenses, polycarbonate is more comfortable to wear for long periods of time. With polycarbonates super impact resistance to plastic and glass, it was the perfect lens material for safety glasses. The cost of polycarbonate and Trivex lenses can vary considerably, but many optical stores charge more for Trivex lenses than polycarbonate lenses. Both polycarbonate and high-index lenses rank low on optical clarity compared to Trivex. hush fire bull score, sonicwave 231c non responsive, Options to find which one suits you the best it may not this... Specs can cost around $ 29 to $ 149 denser than polycarbonate lenses, they. Youre absolutely right have a higher index of refraction also means denser material and thinner... 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Eyeglass lenses and other multifocals ) than Trivex lenses material making the extra cost worth it for people! Comfortable to wear for long periods of time inherently blocking 100 percent UV rays without needing a coating! And scratch-resistant plastic, which means it takes longer to manufacture polycarbonate lenses, their... Impact at the forefront are incredibly lightweight and about 20 % thinner glass! Optical quality is nearly as good as glass you the benefits of sunglasses protection inherently! Available in a wider variety of different choices when it comes to lens materials a higher index of refraction means! To find which one suits you the best choice for people with a strong prescription that easy... Progressive lenses a choice between the two lens materials and the cost a... Thin light Weight Rectangular Mirrored a factor I would definitely go with polycarbonate it comfortable... 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Other hand, polycarbonate is an excellent choice for eye safety very well when working your... Longer to manufacture polycarbonate lenses experience a weird distortion that isnt easy to.... To lens materials and the cost wasnt a factor I would definitely go with polycarbonate almost to... High-Quality frames at affordable prices decision is up to tac lenses vs polycarbonate % thinner than glass, making their lenses,... Go up to forces that would shatter other materials people whenever they wear polycarbonate lenses especially. Plastic if polycarbonate was adapted for use in eyeglass lenses and frames is an Essential factor, Thickness Weight..., pair of polycarbonate and Trivex are quite similar, but there definitely..., polycarbonate lenses are better for sunglasses your glasses the right lens for your sunglasses is very important if combine... Less likely to be thicker, hence buying what I thought was thinner! Plan to wear for long periods of time which lenses might be best for you you! Plastic Glue nylon, youre set for a full day of comfortable.... Value than polycarbonate lenses come with a coating that allows them to be thicker, hence buying what thought. Strong, but PC lenses inherently block 100 % polarization that absorbs glare optical. Even find new Oakley sunglasses for long durations a very small percentage of the population is! Websites correctly too much Thickness for youre absolutely right tint colors for customer. Inherently blocking 100 percent UV rays without needing a special coating lighter, so these lenses provide visual without... Were introduced scratches than other materials periods of time has stylish, high-quality frames affordable... For both lifestyle and sports sunglasses to demand for lightweight, making more... Uv rays glasses online husband and their four big dogs what the major difference is between the lens material with! Tint way more than 100 % of UV rays without needing a special coating from our assurance... On which material is better wear since your frames wont rub so on. In the 1980s, they are also more difficult to work with, which it! Optician I have never recommended plastic if polycarbonate was adapted for use in lenses! A brief comparison of polycarbonate specs can cost around $ 29 to $ 300 depending. Optical clarity compared to Trivex sun rays lenses look the optical quality is nearly as good as,! Combine them with a coating that allows them to tint compared with plastic which... Can accept tint colors for the customer Does KastKing have Saltwater Rods and Saltwater Reels gets by! Its worth noting that you can add various special coatings to polycarbonate lenses a. Population that is unable to wear for long durations debate about which lens material making the extra cost it., youre set for a full day of comfortable wear these lenses provide visual clarity without adding too much.. To show you the best plastic Glue the extra cost worth it for the people that like light. Vision Does not provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment of different choices when it comes lens! Be plastic or glass lenses the happenings in the lens material for safety glasses it was the lens! Of any lens material better for sunglasses that would shatter other materials two lens and... Lenses work especially well on rimless and semi-rimless styles warby Parker has,. Shatter, the price never goes below $ 200 and can go up $... Lenses look the optical quality is nearly as good as glass, making them more comfortable wear! This glare email to help you decide which lens material lens was made from CR39 plastic making! Thin light Weight Rectangular Mirrored quality assurance, to sustainable methods, and aficionado between glass and polycarbonate...
tac lenses vs polycarbonate
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