Can you really buy good prescription eyeglasses for fewer than ten dollars? Well, I wanted to find out so I visited Eye Buy Direct and examined the site. Most of their basic frames and styles are priced at twenty to thirty six dollars but there were quite a few selections at $7.95. What are you going to get for that price I asked myself? I recall paying $160.00 for my eyeglasses with all of the bells and whistles which included anti-scratch, anti reflective, UV coating and color tint at COSTCO last year. So I thought I would check it out. I keep my prescription in my wallet so for $7.95; why not order a back up pair in the off chance they wouldn’t disintegrate in forty eight hours.
The first step was to select the frame and provide the measurements. I selected the Greco style and made the measurement selections by measuring my current frames with a ruler per the instructions. The next step was to enter the prescription. This looked like an opportunity for confusion at first but the elements on the site correlated with my prescription with no problem. Then I had to choose the lens thickness. That was easy because the standard was free and the thinner lens selections had a cost add on. In retrospect, I am not sure why anyone would want thinner lenses. Then I came to the bells and whistles. The anti-scratch is free and I didn’t think I needed any additional features for a back up pair. If I had selected the features on my current eyeglasses, it would have increased the price to a staggering $24.80 or about 16% of the COSTCO price. That took me to the checkout which accepts major credit cards and PayPal. The complete process did not take more than 20 minutes. It may take less time on the next order because they have my prescription and credit card info on file.
Now I had my answer. You can’t buy eyeglasses for less than ten dollars because you have to pay shipping for orders under ninety nine dollars. You would have to really try to spend ninety nine dollars at this store. My total was $15.14; still a ridiculously low price for prescription eyeglasses.
My order was delivered six days later. As usual, I couldn’t wait to be disappointed so I opened the package immediately. The glasses were in a plastic carrying case complete with a polish cloth. When I took them out of the case I thought “these are actually nice”. Upon closer examination, I was absolutely amazed. They fit comfortably and the prescription was perfect. The gold metal frames were substantial and just as attractive as my $160.00 pair. I am not sure they are the same quality but two weeks later I still can’t find any difference.
Like most people I guess, I couldn’t conceive of making a purchase as individual and complicated as prescription eye wear online. It seemed to be a hit or miss proposition but after going through the process, I concluded that the only thing complicated is the vision examination by the optometrist. The downside is that you can’t stand in front of a mirror and try on the frames. Eye Buy Direct has at least a partial solution to that issue. You can download your photo and the site will produce that picture with the selected frames in place. This isn’t ideal but it does provide a glimpse of how they will look. Isn’t technology wonderful? The only true negative is if the frames need any adjustment, you have to do it yourself or find a retailer to do it for you. I sometimes fall asleep with my glasses on and find the frames semi-mangled in the morning. Most metal frames are pliable so I make the adjustments myself by dipping them in boiling water for a couple of minutes and adjusting the shape.
Internet shopping has come a long way in recent years. There are many quality products that can be purchased at substantial savings but this was the best deal I have found. I don’t know how they do it and I really don’t care as long as they keep doing it.
