Update: I have meanwhile tried out other low-cost glasses from options such as Zenni Optical and EyeBuyDirect, that also produce in China, but don't really advertise that fact much. Overall, the frames I received were looking a lot cheaper then the ones I ordered from brands on AliExpress. So, I do still recommend the below options after 2 years - and ordering a few more. :) Update: Update: I have meanwhile tried out other low-cost glasses from options such as Zenni Optical and EyeBuyDirect, that also produce in China, but don't really advertise that fact much. Overall, the frames I received were looking a lot cheaper then the ones I ordered from brands on AliExpress. So, I do still recommend the below options after 2 years - and ordering a few more. :) I have bought my first glasses on AliExpress for just 5 dollars. That included prescription lenses and shippingâââof course. đ While that was a limited time offer, the same pair usually goes for around 15 bucks. Others I have bought in the 20â30 dollar range and am really satisfied with them. Having lived in Asia for a while and seeing glasses in various prescriptions being sold on night markets for just a few dollars, paying hundreds and hundreds of dollars in western countries just seems ridiculous nowâââespecially considering that glasses are just a piece of plastic, metal, and glass. I can buy a decent hi-tech smartphone these days for as little as 100 dollars or less. In comparison, itâs just crazy to spend, say, 200â400 dollars on a low-tech piece of plastic with lenses created by a machine. Warby Parker and others have paved the way for buying glasses online. So why not go a step further and pass on the savings to the consumer as well?! đ¸ Hereâs how to go about buying cheap (only monetary, not in quality) prescription glasses from AliExpress (further links down below): đ˘ Get Your Prescription Details As is the case for other online shops for prescription glasses, you will need your prescription values. You will usually get them from your optician when you buy new glasses and it will have this format: (Example prescription values) (Example prescription values) (Example prescription values) You could also go get your eyes measured at an eye doctorâs. These values you can then pretty much just copy and paste either into AliExpressâs mask, which looks like this: Or you can just message them to the respective seller. If youâre unsure what values go where, itâs probably useful to send your seller a message as wellâââyou can even just send them a picture of your prescription. They are usually super helpful and quick (and will usually address you with Dear friend đ). Dear friend The whole form will then look like this: AliExpress order mask for prescription glasses đ Decide on Frames and Lenses Thereâs a broad choice of frames and lenses on AliExpress. You can generally decide between two modes of ordering: Package deal: Frames and lenses in one orderâââprobably a good starting point for the beginning (see links at the end).Separate frames and lenses (from the same seller): You will have two put the frames and the lenses from the same seller in the shopping basket separately. Usually, the sellers link to their lens offering in the description of the frames. Package deal: Frames and lenses in one orderâââprobably a good starting point for the beginning (see links at the end). Package deal Separate frames and lenses (from the same seller): You will have two put the frames and the lenses from the same seller in the shopping basket separately. Usually, the sellers link to their lens offering in the description of the frames. Separate frames and lenses (from the same seller) As for the different kind of lenses, you can choose of a big variety of functional lenses, such as: anti blue ray (if you sit in front of screens a lot), polarized, gradient, or photochromic ones (that change their color to sunglasses when in direct sunlight). I went for pretty standard ones without any additional functionalityâââeven though I will probably try the photochromic ones for my next order. đ Depending on how bad your eyesight is, you will want to choose between different indexes. You will want thinner lenses/higher indexes, the worse your eyes are. I have a sphere of -2.25 and usually go for a 1.5â1.6 index. The sellers will usually have a recommendation on that in their listingâs descriptionâââand you can always message them. Letâs get to the visually (pun intended) more important part : đ Frame Size and Form Unless you donât exactly know what kind of frames youâd like, itâs probably advantageous to have looked around in physical shops and tried on a few different styles. The sellerâs will carry a huge variety and will usually have a separate category for the newest in-styles. What youâll likely want to do before deciding on a pair, is checking the sizes a little. A sizing chart on AliExpress will give you the sizes for the frames as such: You can compare those to previous glasses you have owned. The sizes are usually written on the inside of the glassesâ temple and will look something like this: (This translates to: lens diameter: 45mm, bridge width: 23mm, and a side/temple length of 145mm) The sizes of your new glasses wonât have to be exactly the same as your old ones thoughâââjust to give you an idea. In the opticianâs shop you will usually be sold the ones that somewhat fit and that they happen to have on the rack just then. đ Some Final Hints Shopping on AliExpress is like Christmas đ: you will shop around, not remember what you bought, and in 2â3 weeks time you will surprise yourself with an unexpected delivery. That is to say, that you will have to wait a little for anything you buy at Aliâsâââbut thatâs not a bad thing: practice your patience đ and frame (!) it as a surpriseâââfrom yourself, to yourself. đ One final note on adjusting the frames once you hold your brand new, super cheap and awesome glasses in your hands: itâs usually quite easy to adjust the frames yourself, if need be. Thereâs tons of explanations on the webâââsuch as here and here. here here Now, lastly, some good starting points to shop around: womenâs prescription package deals, menâs prescription package deals, menâs frames, womenâs frames. And some quality sellers: FONEX, ZENOTTIC, Gatenac, May Flower, EOOUOOE, Mangoboy.Remember: if you buy frames and lenses separately, you want to buy them from the same shop. Otherwise, you will get two deliveries: one with your frames, the other one with the lenses. đ womenâs prescription package deals menâs prescription package deals menâs frames womenâs frames FONEX ZENOTTIC Gatenac May Flower EOOUOOE Mangoboy Happy shopping.
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