Transitions glasses - useless

Transitions glasses - useless

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Discussion

CopperBolt

Original Poster:

892 posts

74 months

Tuesday 30th August 2022
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Hi all

as my eyesight rapidly deteriorating and I've been carrying round separate sunglasses and "readers". Thought it a plan to get some transitions type bifocals with distance in the top and reading bottom.
So £250 later at Boots have ordered a pair and they've arrived. Been out in the sun a few times and they hardly dim at all. Also the bottom reading bit encroaches too much in the upper area but they might say that's my fault at fitting time when things were measured up(when they seemed ok).

Any one else got the transition type glasses? How dark do they go? I'll be taking mine back and asking if they work properly I think. And maybe cheekily asking if the reading area can be changed (ie new lenses fitted)

How far do you reckon I'll get?

Thanks

4Q

3,481 posts

151 months

Tuesday 30th August 2022
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My varifocals go as dark as sunglasses.

Road2Ruin

5,492 posts

223 months

Tuesday 30th August 2022
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Same for me. Varifocals and all good.

Super Sonic

7,346 posts

61 months

Tuesday 30th August 2022
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You may find they don't go very dark in the car due to your windows filtering the UV, which is what they react to.

Scrump

22,944 posts

165 months

Tuesday 30th August 2022
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My varifocals have the XTRactive transitions coating which is supposed to go darker than the normal transitions coating.
I find they go dark enough.
(Noticed they stayed darker at lower light conditions when in the Arctic and I think they didn’t go as dark when I was in the Middle East)

Frankthered

1,630 posts

187 months

Tuesday 30th August 2022
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As for the varifocal part, mine are fine, but I'm with the OP regarding how dark the lenses go.

I suspect they are doing better than I think though - sometimes when I take them off, I realise how dark they are and how well they were actually working.

I think that my problem is that I was spoilt by an old pair of single-vision polarised sunglasses that I had which were (still are) excellent - they're just not transitions (I don't think polarised transitions exist) and I can't read in them!!

Boringvolvodriver

10,081 posts

50 months

Tuesday 30th August 2022
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Scrump said:
My varifocals have the XTRactive transitions coating which is supposed to go darker than the normal transitions coating.
I find they go dark enough.
(Noticed they stayed darker at lower light conditions when in the Arctic and I think they didn’t go as dark when I was in the Middle East)
My optician told me that the transition lenses are heat dependant and well so that the colder it is, the darker they will go, which kinda defeats the purpose in the heat when it is sunny!

Whikst mine go dark, not as dark as sunglasses and I find that even in overcast weather, they will go dark, albeit not as dark.

As others have said, not great in the car.

I had hoped that the technology had moved on more from when I last had transitions back in 1995 but have been disappointed.

My solution is glasses with a magnetic clip on sunglasses bit which I got from an optician we used several times in Cyprus although not sure you can get them in the Uk.


Boringvolvodriver

10,081 posts

50 months

Tuesday 30th August 2022
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In terms of the the reading bit, then definitely get Boots to re do - I suspect they didn’t get the measurements right - has to be spot on for varifocals. There are differ t levels of varifocal - I always have the best and most expensive one which works very well. The basic not so much

CopperBolt

Original Poster:

892 posts

74 months

Wednesday 21st September 2022
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Boringvolvodriver said:
My solution is glasses with a magnetic clip on sunglasses bit which I got from an optician we used several times in Cyprus although not sure you can get them in the Uk.
Yes Boots used to do these but no longer. I have a pair but the prescription is too old now. If I could get the frames re-used would be an answer if thats possible.

Boringvolvodriver

10,081 posts

50 months

Wednesday 21st September 2022
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CopperBolt said:
Yes Boots used to do these but no longer. I have a pair but the prescription is too old now. If I could get the frames re-used would be an answer if thats possible.
Should be possible - I have done that before and if Boots won't do it then an independent optician should - providing the frames are still good.

That's what I would do - won't have transition lenses again

Dogwatch

6,274 posts

229 months

Wednesday 21st September 2022
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Road2Ruin said:
Same for me. Varifocals and all good.
yes

CopperBolt

Original Poster:

892 posts

74 months

Monday 10th October 2022
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Latest thrilling update for all of you waiting on tenter hooks....

Finally got round to taking the useless glasses back to Boots. The nice young lady in there took them off(my glasses! Keep your minds out of the gutter!) to a UV machine and returned with the glasses looking extremely dark.
"Thats how dark I want them to go!" I pipe up.
She then pops outside into the sun instead with them and sure enough they dont go dark. So they're going back to wherever they go to be fixed and should get them back in a week or so.

Fingers crossed.

Nimby

4,907 posts

157 months

Monday 10th October 2022
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