The idea of digital lenses may conjure up futuristic, electronic eyewear that gives you heat-detecting vision and the ability to zoom in on far away objects, but the truth is that digital lenses look exactly like traditional lenses in a side-by-side comparison. There are no batteries involved! The true advantage of digital lenses (also called high-definition or free-form lenses) becomes apparent when you look through them.
Every eye is different, so getting digital lenses vs. traditional lenses is like the difference between getting an outfit off the rack and getting something tailor-made especially for your body perfectly. With high-definition digital lenses, the creation process takes into account the position of your pupil, the angle of the lens in the frames, the shape of your frames, and even that angle of your eyes when looking in various directions. Digital lenses really shine when used for progressive lenses (no-line bifocals), which wearers find to be much more comfortable and easier to adapt to than traditional, non-digital lenses.
High-definition digital lenses are made with an optimized computer-controlled scanning process which allows for much greater precision than how regular glasses are made. Conventional tools don’t allow for the same sort of control so they can lead to vision that still feels like it could be sharper, even when wearing a perfect prescription for your eyes. The way conventional lenses are made will sometimes create spots that aren’t as clear, or a bending effect toward the edges of your peripheral vision because of the shape of your glasses. This is not an issue with digital lenses. You will have better peripheral vision, less glare, and improved contrast sensitivity.
To further improve the creation process, your eye care professional will usually take some added measurements based on your frames. This will ensure an exact fit and tailoring to your eye and eyewear choice.
So who can benefit from digital lenses? Everyone! People with difficult prescriptions, astigmatism, and presbyopia (the need for bifocals) will see the greatest improvement in vision with digital lenses versus traditionally manufactured lenses.
The next question is one we hear a lot: how much extra do they cost? Unlike the price difference between a high-definition television and the old tube models, digital lenses are not too much extra. They are more labor-intensive to create, so typically you can expect to pay about 25–35% more for your lenses. Once you experience the high-definition lenses and sharper vision, however, you’ll be surprised how inadequate your old lenses seem!
Talk to your eye care professional if you’re interested in getting digital lenses for your eyewear.
