Good place to buy glasses? Good brands to buy?

kissenger

kissenger

kissenger

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I need some new glasses but I haven't bought a pair in ages and I don't know where's good. Anyone got any recommendations in terms of good high street or online sellers, or what brands to look out for.

I want a quality pair and am happy to spend some money but I don't care about buying designer glasses just for the sake of it.
 
The designer glasses aren't actually made by those designers. They are simply licensed products. When you think about how much you are just paying for a logo, it does put you off. Go for the pair that looks the best irrespective of price. I actually think they make budget glasses look crappy to increase the sales of the upper ranges.
 
Specsavers are the Kwikfit of the eye world.
They are cheap, but pretty useless.

By all means go to Specsavers, but don't expect the glasses to fit your head/face properly or for the centre of your eye to be in the correct position on the lens.

An independent opticians will be best by far. The service will be from someone who knows what they are on about and the glasses you end up with will really make a difference to your life.
It all depends what is important to you really. If you wear glasses sometimes or you are not bothered then go to specsavers, but if you have very poor eyesight and/or require your glasses to be worn often then I would spend £300+ and get the job done properly.

For me, I use daily contact lenses so rarely wear my glasses, so I don't feel the need to spend hundreds on glasses.
 
Nitefly said:
The designer glasses aren't actually made by those designers. They are simply licensed products. When you think about how much you are just paying for a logo, it does put you off. Go for the pair that looks the best irrespective of price. I actually think they make budget glasses look crappy to increase the sales of the upper ranges.
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Do you read Reddit too :D

80% of the glasses out there are made by the same company


The above is why I would never buy a pair of glasses on the brand name alone, because most of the time they are just licensing their name anyway.

@OpenToSuggestions, I agree with you about Specsavers, but the thing I find with independent opticians is that they rarely have a large selection of glasses to choose from. They will do a better job with getting your prescription right but probably won't do the exact style of glasses you want. I might try getting an eye test done at an independents and then buy the glasses online.
 
kissenger said:
@OpenToSuggestions, I agree with you about Specsavers, but the thing I find with independent opticians is that they rarely have a large selection of glasses to choose from. They will do a better job with getting your prescription right but probably won't do the exact style of glasses you want. I might try getting an eye test done at an independents and then buy the glasses online.
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Valid point.
I find my head is wider than average and not many glasses fit my face. I last bought glasses in 2010 and found that the two pairs I got (2 for 1 offer) had OK lenses but one pair was far too small for my face and looks strange.

I wonder if it is possible to get an independent optician to do the sight test, then buy glasses online (I once saw a TV program saying each lens costs <40p each to make...) then pay the independent optician to perform a 'fitting service' where he/she spends an hour with you making adjustment to the glasses on their fancy machine to provide a good fit.
 
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Actually thinking about getting a new pair of glasses myself. Does anyone have experience with Vision Express? If so how would you say they compare with other high street opticians.
 
I'm getting that I will need some soon, not good that specsavers aren't getting decent recommendations as they are the folks that our company use, if I go elsewhere I will have to pay
 
Mart2912 said:
Actually thinking about getting a new pair of glasses myself. Does anyone have experience with Vision Express? If so how would you say they compare with other high street opticians.
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I have had positive experience with vision express personally, they are more expensive but the only pair of glasses I found I liked in spec savers were the ones my best mate had bought. So I went to vision express.

1st eye test done in derby by a young lady with a pair of plastic glasses and lenses that she kept changing in and out, (I actually went for contacts) I wasn't happy with them so went in to my local store (Ashbourne) where they have the much newer eye test machine (massive machine attached to ceiling) they got my prescription right but I couldn't get on with contacts after a 4 week trial so went with glasses.

However I will say the lenses are ever so slightly loose inside the frames and one does pop out very occasionaly when cleaning them, not sure if this is how they are meant to be but it is rarely a problem.
My sunglasses (Oakley) bought at the same time are flawless (apart from frequent loose arms) :)
 
I ended up going to Boots. They did a good job with the test, but as soon as I mentioned I was thinking of buying online it got a bit weird. Clearly they are using the cheap eye test deal they do to lure people in to buy their frames. They wouldn't even give me my pupillary distance. I suppose they're not required to but it's still annoying.

The thing is, I don't care about spending the money but it galls me to spend twice as much on some frames that aren't even the ones I want. I even asked the woman if I could order on some frames on Boots' website and get them sent to the store for lenses to be fitted, but they weren't having it. So I ended up measuring my own PD with a ruler and ordering the exact frames I wanted online. Should get here early this week. Just hope they don't mess up the lenses or I will end up getting them redone at a proper opticians.
 
OpenToSuggestions said:
Specsavers are the Kwikfit of the eye world.
They are cheap, but pretty useless.

By all means go to Specsavers, but don't expect the glasses to fit your head/face properly or for the centre of your eye to be in the correct position on the lens.

An independent opticians will be best by far. The service will be from someone who knows what they are on about and the glasses you end up with will really make a difference to your life.
It all depends what is important to you really. If you wear glasses sometimes or you are not bothered then go to specsavers, but if you have very poor eyesight and/or require your glasses to be worn often then I would spend £300+ and get the job done properly.

For me, I use daily contact lenses so rarely wear my glasses, so I don't feel the need to spend hundreds on glasses.
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I find Specsavers to be very good, my local one anyway. They have always spent a lot of time with when it comes to choosing and fitting the frames too. My prescription is a strange one yet they always get it spot on, their lenses are also very good and vastly cheaper than Vision Express.
 
Specsaver hate is trendy among those that wear glasses. Service will vary from store to store just like nay other large national company. Don't write them off due to a few complaints.

I used Vision Express last time I bought glasses. I had a very good service. They give you straight answers when you ask if these glasses are good for you (fit face, style etc I just ask them to be brutally honest..) They'll spend as much time as needed getting a decent fit. They always replace the nose pieces free of charge and screws if you lose one.

Best bit is the scan of your eyeballs after having eye test done :D
 
I always get mine from 2 for 1 glasses online after a free eye test somewhere (Tesco usually pony up free eye tests). Good service, great prices and a good range of styles too.

Currently sporting a rather nice pair of Tom Ford glasses which where a lot cheaper online and hard to find offline other than in high end opticians. Some of the Specsaver styles look like scuba gear.
 
'Harry said:
Specsaver hate is trendy among those that wear glasses. Service will vary from store to store just like nay other large national company. Don't write them off due to a few complaints.
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I agree with this. I've been using Specsavers for years and can't fault the service. Their tests are very thorough, their staff are friendly (at least they are in my local store) and they have a good selection of frames. They also tend to have good deals as well. They do the usual 2 for 1 deal and you also get a 'Golden Ticket' to get 50% off a pair of specs if used within 6 months and, if you use the golden ticket, they give you another one. This is handy for me as I need lots of glasses. I need distance glasses and prescription reading glasses as well as safety glasses for work (I prefer to get my own and claim the money back as my employer uses an online company who are rubbish). I also work in Egypt most of the time so prescription sunglasses (and tinted safety glasses) are a must. All in all, I usually have, as a minimum, 7 pairs of specs (2 distance, 2 reading, 2 safety and 1 sunglasses). If I was to buy that lot from an independent, it would cost me a fortune. Getting them all half price from Specsavers means I can afford the ultra thin lenses, which is handy as my prescription is quite hefty.

I don't like the idea of buying online as I prefer the personal service and fitting, as well as the help and advice from a human being. Contrary to what OpenToSuggestions says, I have never had a badly fitting pair of glasses from Specsavers. They always take the time to help you choose frames that will fit your face and also take the time to fit and adjust them properly when they arrive. The staff in my local shop will give you an honest opinion if the frames don't suit you.

This thread reminds me I have a golden ticket that needs to be used before the 4th of December. Time to take a trip down and get a new pair. Both my current pairs of distance glasses are about 5 years old and 2 prescriptions ago (luckily my prescription hasn't changed much recently); it's about time I got a pair with my latest prescription.
 
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