Cheap Prescription Glasses......Now available on the Net!!!

[Manifestor_of_Light]

I ordered 3 pairs of prescription glasses from www.zennioptical.com

They make them in Hong Kong. They are incredibly cheap starting at $8.95, frame and single vision lens.

I am very nearsighted and wear bifocals. I got no-line bifocals, anti-reflective coating, detachable shades, a slight tint, and high index polycarbonate.

The basic prices for lens and frame were: 12.95(plastic fr.), 23.95(metal fr.) and 29.95 (stainless steel fr.).

All that plus shipping was $200.00. :toast:

There are several other websites that sell glasses. Zenni Optical has the best frame selection I found. I had to get full rim frames because of my scrip.

The main problem I had was finding lenses that are tall enough for bifocals, because the fashion now is the narrow ones that look like a peeping tom caught in a Venetian blind. :evilgrin:


I got: #4961, #3627 and #3871. They arrived today. They come with a nice hardshell plastic case and a cleaning cloth.

Such a deal!!!!

[Wapsie B]

1. Thanks for the info!

It's about time for me to get new glasses.

[Manifestor_of_Light]

2. Also 39dollarglasses.com

My guy got some trifocals from the eye dr. recently and they were $900.00!!! :wtf:

He is pissed and feels ripped off.

Important thing to remember: Get a copy of your scrip from your doctor and make sure they write down your PD (Pupillary Distance). That is so they can put the center of the lenses in the right spacing for your eyes.

I'm in shock over $200.00 for THREE pairs of glasses with clip on shades, and no-line bifocals.
One of the pairs has a very nice beveled edge on the inside AND outside of the lenses. Not just polished edges, but beveled, about an eighth of an inch in from the rims.

Reminds me of a fancy glass topped coffee table with a beveled edge. Classy looking.

(But then I'm a classy old reformed tart.) :evilgrin:

[ecstatic]

7. let us know if your product actually arrives

Isn't there a big customs thing it has to go through? :shrug:

oops nevermind. Your OP says they arrived.

[fishnfla]

22. make sure for stong rx

ask for the vertex ditance from the phoropter to frame *Very important*

also, for bifocals, make sure they get the * seg height * correct ( the line of your bifocal should be at mid pupil for com- puter use)

also for no line trifocals they should have a special measurement, a monocular pupillary distance, and a different seg height

[parasim]

3. Wait... what? 200 bucks?

What about that 12.95 or plastic frames, 23.95 for metal and 29.95 for steel? on top of that, shipping brings it too 200 bucks?

sorry, not getting it...

This post looks like the spam I am constantly deleting from my mail box. (no offense intended)

[dustbunnie]

4. The poster got three pairs!!! It IS a deal.

[MajorChode]

8. Consider what he is getting and price it at other places

Even at Wal-Mart, with relatively cheap frames a single pair of no-line bifocals with clip-ons will run you close to $200. He got 3 pair.

It's not spam, it's just a really cheap place to buy glasses and the quality is as good as anywhere.

[marybourg]

5. "They make them in Hong Kong"

When your local optician lays off his technician and receptionist, will they be able to buy the product or service *you* produce?

[ecstatic]

6. I hear ya but this is quickly becoming a "me" society. Local

businesses have already thrown regular consumers under the bus. I remember going into America's Best under their fake ad claiming buy one get one free 69.95. By the time I left that place I had to pay 292 bucks!

[MagickMuffin]

10. No reason to lay anyone off

You still have to go in to have your eyes checked, so you'll have a prescription. I would wager a bet that the glasses they sell are made in China.:shrug:

[Manifestor_of_Light]

11. None of the law firms in Houston would hire me.

So I do not "produce" anything.

The economy has not given a damn about keeping me employed, with my skills, education, yada yada all that BS that makes you think you are "employable".

For all the employability I got, I might as well be a felon with a rap sheet.

12 years of grade school, 12 years of college, yada yada, experience.......doesn't get me a job.

[LanternWaste]

15. The only jobs I've lost...

The only jobs I've lost were lost to younger, less experienced Americans who took considerably less money...

Was I able to buy the product or service *you* produce....? If not, what is the precise and relevant moral difference?

[Warpy]

9. The specs I'm wearing aren't much more expensive than that

and the frames are remarkably stylish wire ones, although cheap, some of the cheapest they had.

Plus, if something untoward happens, I can take them in and get them fixed.

I hate that peeping through a Venetian blind look, too. Fortunately, there are enough unfashionable frames out there for those of us over 40 to wear.

[Luminous Animal]

12. All hail Hong Kong and their children who make our glasses.

And every U.S. citizen that contributes to the race to the bottom.

[Manifestor_of_Light]

13. The powers that be laid off millions of us.

They keep ALL the money for themselves.

And now they wonder why we can't buy anything......

:shrug:

[Pab Sungenis]

14. I personally use EyeBuyDirect.com

metal frames, coating, photgray, and shipping was $40.00 total.

[Skidmore]

16. So why can't this sort of deal be offered through our local

stores? What are we paying for here? And I have the same problem with pharmaceuticals and some very basic medical services. What are we paying for?

[FormerDittoHead]

17. I pay ~$175 for my bifocals+coatings. (not including the exam). I'm going to buy online next.

Oh, and for those $175 glasses - I had to wait a week. Hmmmm. Wonder where THEY were made?

[Manifestor_of_Light]

18. Some answers to those questions.

An article from Slate. I must be behind the times -- this was in August 2008.

http://www.slate.com/id/2198746

Quote:
Why are eyeglasses so cheap online? It's the classic Internet story of low overhead. Nearly every pair of glasses sold in this country is manufactured in China at a very low price—a few dollars for the lenses, a few dollars for the frames. When you buy eyeglasses at an optometrist's office, you're paying mainly for rent, labor, marketing, designer licensing fees, and a huge markup. Online retailers cut out all these costs by contracting directly with frame and lens manufacturers overseas. When you place an order, lenses that fit your prescription are cut and molded into your frame, then shipped directly to you. The price competition between online retailers keeps markups low, too. Indeed, unlike offline shops, the online eyeglass stores keep lowering their prices; one Web site, 19dollareyeglasses.com, changed its name to the more generic Zenni Optical because it began selling glasses for much less than $19. Its lowest-priced pair now goes for $8.



Another glasses place: Goggles4U.com

A Blog to discuss shopping experiences: http://glassyeyes.blogspot.com


A post at BoingBoing about Glassyeyes:
http://www.boingboing.net/2006/12/08/glassy-eyes-blog-eye.html

Some of us will probably get new glasses MORE often, and get our eyes checked every year, because the specs are now cheap. I used to get new ones every three years or so, because the $325 for what I thought were pretty simple bifocals was tough. Now I've replaced my scratched up pair with three pairs of different styles, with clip on shades. I can adjust the nose pads myself to get them to fit.

I also got fitted for contacts for the first time in several years, because I found out about internet mail-order eyeballs. Woohooo!!



Those people who want us to support the local economy? Well, the local attorneys (All 15,000 of them) wouldn't support me by hiring ME for a job that I am well qualified for. So there are two sides to this "buy local" story.

[FormerDittoHead]

24. Thanks for the info.

I simply don't agree with others here that consumers can be expected to enact social change by making financially bad decisions. If something of the same quality is available for a lower price, I'm sorry, it's simply RATIONAL to buy the cheaper option. In my experience, that 'force' can NEVER be overcome in the long run. Walmart is still going strong, people! Simply, it's the role of government to regulate such things, and I fully support THAT. Those other people don't stop to think that the money not going into the pocket of my local optician for the glasses from China HE'S marking up, it's STAYING IN *MY* POCKET to save/spend.

Of course, this is coming from a guy who's cut his own hair for the last 12 years with a Flo-bee. (no joke!)

Good luck with your career in law. You never know when the phone will ring.

[Shakespeare]

20. See if you have a For Eyes optical in your area (2 pair for $99)

Their 2 pair for $99 (among other great deals) is the best deal I've ever gotten on glasses. AND the frame selection is really good, and the staff are professional and have always been friendly. I also use their on-site optician, and he's the best eye doctor I've ever gone to (I'm 44, and have worn glasses since I was 8).

http://www.foreyes.com

[ejpoeta]

26. well, we are paying for that person that sits on the other side of the desk

measuring and helping you pick out your frames. we are paying for the store. we are paying for all those frames lining the store to sit there for us to look at. we are paying for the lighting... the equipment. it's called.... overhead.

[fishnfla]

19. all 3 of them frames will break within 3 months time

better snap them up while your lenses still fit

[1]

23. "Nearly every pair of glasses sold in this country is manufactured in China"

"When you buy eyeglasses at an optometrist's office, you're paying mainly for rent, labor, marketing, designer licensing fees, and a huge markup."

http://www.slate.com/id/2198746

you were saying?

[ejpoeta]

27. that's like saying we shouldn't be able to get our medicines from canada.

because you don't know about the safety. i first of all, am going to bet that they keep tighter controls on their food and drugs than WE DO. second, where do people think our medicines are manufactured!!! overseas, most of them, aren't they??

i don't know how i feel about getting glasses online or anything. i would hesitate because when you go into the store, they do measurements and stuff, and when you pick the glasses up they check to make sure the glasses are right. how do you do that online?? and if there is a problem with the glasses, i can take them back to the store. how do i do that online?

[1]

21. great glasses at a fantastic price. $5 shipping no matter how many pairs you order....

they deliver within 2 weeks.

i will never order anywhere else again...

[JCMach1]

25. Still a rip-off, custom made glasses in Asia cost as little

as $25...

I pay closer to $50 for cool designer glasses in the Middle-East.

This company is making some hella profits!