Two questions we get asked quite often. Unfortunately there are no easy answers, in particular to the first part of the question. So why is this? Well, it’s a bit like asking “how much is a car and why are some more expensive than others?”. Even that question cannot be answered easily, because let’s face it, all cars, will get you from A to B, eventually, but some will do it more reliably than others, or in more comfort than others, or faster than others, or more economically than others. The list goes on. It’s a bit like that for progressive lenses as well.

I like to draw the comparison to cars, because for some reason we can all relate to cars and their perceived and real values. Let’s say for professional reasons you have to spend quite a bit of time in your car and you cover a large amount of kilometers every year (say more than 50,000km).  You now must buy a new car because the old one is past it’s “use by” date. So how do you decide on what car to get? If you’d be given the choice between a Holden Barina, a Holden Commodore and a Holden HSV, which car would you choose? And then, what accessories do you consider a “must have”? Do you require an air-con, a CD player or a “hands-free” phone kit? Well, think about it and decide for yourself what the pros and cons for each one of the models are, which one you are most likely to choose and in in what configuration.

Actually, in a way, you have to make a similar decission when you purchase progressive lenses. Some are cheaper than others, some are more comfortable than others, some give you wider reading areas, some give you wider distance areas, some fit better in small frames, some fit better in large frames. Some are good allround lenses, some solve work specific situations better, etc. etc..

You really have to think about how and how much you are using your glasses. As Dispensing Opticians, it is our job to make you aware of your requirements and to provide you with the best possible solution for your specific requirements. In order to do this, we ask specific questions that relate to your visual requirements. These questions relate to your profession, your lifestyle and other aspects that may affect the lens choice specifically for you.

As well as different design concepts for progressive lenses, there are other decissions to make. Do you require your lenses to be very tough? Do you require your lenses to be very thin? Do you require tinted or transitions lenses? Same as before, the list goes on, and the answers you give will result in a lens suggestion from your dispensing optician that best addresses your requirements.

If you are serious about getting the best possible lenses for you specifically and without having to make too many visual compromises, you can  – unfortunately – not choose your lenses by price alone (like going through a menu and deciding on the cheapest or most expensive option available). The cheapest option may become the most expensive one for you if you cannot use your glasses as you were hoping to. The most expensive option may also not necessarily and automatically the best option for you.

It is very important that you find a Dispensing Optician you trust, who is willing to listen and who can ask the right questions. If you do find one, you are bound to succeed and love your progressive glasses, no matter how much the glasses have cost you. The cheaper option may actually be exactly what you needed. But – if you chose the cheapest option just on price, without taking your actual visual requirements into consideration, then your glasses will end up in your drawer instead of your nose and they may become the most expensive glasses you have ever had.

There are currently hundreds of progressive lenses on the market. Each manufacturer offers a whole range that vary not only in price, but also in performance. In broad terms these lenses will fit into these three categories:

• Simple Progressive Lens (budget lens, from around NZ$240/pair)
• All Purpose Progressive Lens (standard lens, from around NZ$300/pair)
• Individualised Progressive Lens (state of the art lens with digitally designed surfaces. These newest developments focus on increasing the stability and size of the visual field in all directions and are comparable to HD – high definition technology, from around NZ$340/pair)

Within each of those categories you will find variations relating to manufacturer, design, material, tint, coatings etc.. The final cost of your progressive lenses depends on the combination of those variations. If you want to take the car example again, the final price rag of your new car is the sum of the base price and your chosen extras (sunroof, radio, air con, etc.etc.).

To discuss and compare in detail the differences in performance of various progressive lens designs probably goes beyond what can be said in a blog post. However, I did find a really good graphic on the Carl Zeiss website which, in very broad terms, shows the difference between the three categories listed before.

Title:	Progressive Lens Comparison
Description:	Progressive Lenses - Compare "standard" and "advanced" designs