That explains why I'm entirely dateless then. Oh well

I went to Specsavers.

Thanks for the article, Alex. Interesting reading. Those Italians, are very, very clever!

Just because they are made by the same Co or even in the same factory does not mean that they use the same materials. There will then be differences in the quality of the materials.

However most of what you pay for will be the name.

I have a pair of Oakleys - had them since 2005. So overall they are paying for themselves as I use them not only for day to day but for sailing and as they wrap around would use them for skiing to
Overall a good investment I think

I have two pairs of Oakleys, one of which I bought the US something like 8 years ago, when they were considerably cheaper in the US than here but still cost quite a bit. They are what you might call a 'sports' pair that do the wrap around thing so I also wear them for snow sports. They don't make that model any more but they're pretty close to the 'jawbone' one. I also have a 'dress' pair, which are just standard sunglasses (x-wires I think) but they cost roughly half the price of the first ones.

I also have a dirt cheap pair of sunglasses I bought from Boots for about a tenner that I leave in the car just in case of surprise glare. They're nowhere near the quality of the Oakleys - the lenses are much less sophisticated and the frames appear to be made of tinfoil. They're there for emergencies and if the car gets broken into and they get nicked I won't mind. But anyone claiming they're just as good as the ones I paid proper money for is living in cloud cuckoo land.

Jon

My eyes are very sensitive to the sun. I've never found better lenses for the money than Oakley which is why I buy them. It's a shame that Oakleys never look great, but I'm in it for the lenses rather than the style.

It's an interesting article, but as I say, I've not found any better lenses than Oakley. I've found "as good", but they've been even more expensive.

Edit: Just realised, that's my eyejackets (which I can't seem to find anywhere) in my avatar.

I went for these after Finn mentioned them:

http://www.sunglasses-shop.co.uk/uk-sun ... /13626.htm

Though I only paid £40 odd for them inc. delivery. I bought them cos I wanted a pair that were relatively cheap and polarized, but didn't look like an attempt at being hip

The view is more important behind the lens, not in front.

When I put on my sunglasses the world goes dark. I like that.

Al

Ah, you have the JooJanta 100 Peril-Sensitive sunglasses which go black when you are in immediate danger so you aren't scared unnecessarily.

I fear I'm missing a reference to something

Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.

I got it wrong. They should be the Joo Janta 200 Super-Chromatic Peril Sensitive Sunglasses.

Wasn't that because Zaphod needed four lenses?

I could do with those just on the way to work, never mind entering the place

No

Correct

I bought 2 pairs of Ray Bans (long story short, I lost one pair, replaced them and then found the first pair)... That was about 11 years ago. I still wear them every day in the summer...

I never wear sunglasses - I always feel like a bit of a tit for wearing them. Even in Spain or Tenerife where it is sunny more than two days in a row I never felt as though I needed a pair of sunglasses. Regardless, I never see the point in anything "designer" - why would I want to pay £60 for a £10 t-shirt made in a sweat shop in China just because it has some foreign bloke's name sewn into it somewhere?