How badly are we being ripped off on eyewear? Former industry execs tell all • Hacker News Board

Re: How badly are we being ripped off on eyewear? Former industry execs tell all

#181

Post by oscar_wong67 » Tue, Mar 05, 2019, 8:21 PM UTC

igivanov wrote: post #69

jasode wrote: post #8

I was able to slash my eyeglasses expenditures in both the exams and the frames: eye exams: I used to pay the optometrist $153 ($117 refraction + $36 dilation). I later found out that Costco often has an optometrist on site in a tiny office and will charge just $59 (and add +$20 for dilation). That's less than half the cost of most other optometrists. frames: switched to Zenni online to avoid the LensCrafters/Pearle/…

Is it in the US? In Canada Costco prescription glasses are horribly expensive.

Cheaper than a regular eyewear store though

Re: How badly are we being ripped off on eyewear? Former industry execs tell all

#182

Post by leguminous » Tue, Mar 05, 2019, 8:22 PM UTC

sampo wrote: post #113

driverdan wrote: post #98

Earlier quoted context omitted.

A 1000 sq ft home costs nowhere near $200,000 to build. The land, on the other hand, costs more than that alone in major cities.

> The land, on the other hand, costs more than that alone in major cities. You can build apartment buildings 5, 10, 20 or even 80 floors high. The cost of land per apartment can be made quite small by building higher.

As you build up, the construction costs (and ongoing maintenance costs) per square foot of livable space can increase significantly, though. You need more engineering, more expensive materials, fancy cranes, extra safety procedures, etc. Plus more of the potentially livable floor space is instead taken up by elevator shafts and machinery.

Re: How badly are we being ripped off on eyewear? Former industry execs tell all

#183

Post by tmaly » Tue, Mar 05, 2019, 8:23 PM UTC

TheLoneAdmin wrote: post #137

eeeeeeeeeeeee wrote: post #74

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It doesn't even seem like anyone has interest in building $200,000 houses anymore, but they will sell you a poorly made condo for $400,000 and $600/mo HOA fees. I am a single person trying to find a house that is not four or five bedrooms (I only need one or two) and doesn't cost 1/2 mil minimum and it's difficult. This used to be called "the starter house" but it doesn't seem to exist anymore with new construction.

The biggest cost in any metro area is land. There are few empty lots left to build on, and those go for a premium. Not going to give any specific listing publicity, but "$350,000 USD for 0.047 acres empty lot" is common in the residential parts of Atlanta. We recently paid $25M for 8 acres with abandoned warehouses on them, to build condos on. We're still looking at $100k land costs per condo. Go out two counties and…

zoning laws do not help either. If you're in an area that requires a min 2 acre lot while your grandfathered neighbors have house on 1/4 acre, that surely does not help the price.

Re: How badly are we being ripped off on eyewear? Former industry execs tell all

#184

Post by walterbell » Tue, Mar 05, 2019, 8:24 PM UTC

caymanjim wrote: post #43

Lens Crafters charges a huge markup if you want their lenses put into your own frames. It's almost cheaper to buy new frames from them (and in the case of particularly-expensive lenses, it is in fact cheaper to buy new frames). That's clearly a scam. Warby Parker sells glasses at more reasonable prices, but their frames are god-awful hideous tortoiseshell plastic abominations. If you want nice metal frames, they have…

EyeglassLensDirect will put lenses into your frames.

Re: How badly are we being ripped off on eyewear? Former industry execs tell all

#185

Post by rootusrootus » Tue, Mar 05, 2019, 8:24 PM UTC

mindslight wrote: post #54

jasode wrote: post #8

I was able to slash my eyeglasses expenditures in both the exams and the frames: eye exams: I used to pay the optometrist $153 ($117 refraction + $36 dilation). I later found out that Costco often has an optometrist on site in a tiny office and will charge just $59 (and add +$20 for dilation). That's less than half the cost of most other optometrists. frames: switched to Zenni online to avoid the LensCrafters/Pearle/…

Zenni requires you to do a bit of your own research, like every other new-economy self-service approach. But it's worth it. Switching to Zenni has allowed me to move to cheap CR-39 lenses rather than expensive high index material. CR-39 is soft, and if I'm paying a lot for frames then the lenses getting scratched is a Big Deal. Then pile on further costs for coatings etc. But if the frames and lenses are both inexpen…

What you mention about polycarbonate is interesting. I just got my first pair of glasses (well, the first in about 35 years) and I can't quite put my finger on it but they bother me. Clarity is better, but there's something about the colors of things, especially where things contrast, that is bothersome. I end up taking them off (they are only really for computer use at this point, my vision isn't all that bad yet) just to see normally, if less clear.

Off to do some research...

Re: How badly are we being ripped off on eyewear? Former industry execs tell all

#186

Post by mikecarlton » Tue, Mar 05, 2019, 8:27 PM UTC

walterbell wrote: post #66

Eyebuydirect is notable because: - US based - Small premium over Hong Kong (Zenni) - Essilor lenses (similar to LensCrafters) - Wide frame selection, some are clones of designer frames which cost 20x - 2 week refund/replace for any reason - No prescription needed Their human customer service seems to be in Malaysia, so CS interactions via voice or email can take a few iterations, but are usually resolved within a few…

I’ll second the recommendation for EyeBuyDirect. Great quality and great prices. My last pair of glasses was <$60 and are the best pair I’ve ever owned.

Re: How badly are we being ripped off on eyewear? Former industry execs tell all

#187

Post by MrLeap » Tue, Mar 05, 2019, 8:27 PM UTC

eeeeeeeeeeeee wrote: post #74

sampo wrote: post #56

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> how much of our middle class burden comes from hidden rent seeking parasites like this. If you include the unwillingness to respond to demand by building enough new homes in the popular urban areas, probably a lot. A 1000 sq.ft. home (house or condo) should not cost more than $200,000 to build. Anything above that, someone is making profit.

It doesn't even seem like anyone has interest in building $200,000 houses anymore, but they will sell you a poorly made condo for $400,000 and $600/mo HOA fees. I am a single person trying to find a house that is not four or five bedrooms (I only need one or two) and doesn't cost 1/2 mil minimum and it's difficult. This used to be called "the starter house" but it doesn't seem to exist anymore with new construction.

I decided to take a break from society last year. I'm fortunate enough where I am that it's eminently reasonable to do.

I found some Mennonites that build small 14 * 28 foot cabins with two sleeping lofts. It costs about 8k, and that includes delivery to your land. They come with the exterior/roof finished, but the interior is up to you.

Your personal asceticism modulates the cost. My shower is actuated by a ball valve. I set the temperature at the inline gas water heater to perfection, so I don't need hot and cold! I was surprised to learn how cheap the insulation, carpet, sheetrock, mud and paint were.

Rural land here is about 2k per acre. Many plots already have wells dug, but if not It'll cost about 4-6k to get one drilled, and 500-1000$ for a well pump.

Septic tanks are a few grand. A trenching shovel is cheaper, but that option depends on the topology of your land and your heart.

I get my electricity from solar. If you do that, you need some panels, an inverter, charge controller and batteries. My system is pretty modest. 10 deep cycle batteries. I've lost track of how many panels we've got. Most of them we soldered the cells together so it kind of all blurs together. The whole of it probably cost about 1700$. It's enough to run our super efficient 12 volt fridge, the pump and a few laptops.. except when we go a week without sun during the winter.

Next consulting gig I get, I'll probably get a wind generator as well.

When it's oppressively cloudy, I use a small gasoline generator to power all the stuff. It also will kick on a battery charger that'll top the batteries off.

This winter I used a propane heater. I've come to realize liquid propane is somewhat money inefficient compared to a wood stove. I'll have the wood stove installed by next winter. I'll probably keep using the propane oven.

Leading up to me dropping out of society, I came to resent paying rent.. I resented the thought of office power games having survival consequences for my life. I didn't have to off-grid like I have.. There are power lines. It's just such a great feeling to cut out monthly subscription costs from my life. The serenity it brings is maximum. Mother gaia gives me my water and sol my electrons.

I still do consulting work as it comes to me. Blissfully, I no longer feel desperation and anxiety between contracts.

Re: How badly are we being ripped off on eyewear? Former industry execs tell all

#188

Post by tasty_freeze » Tue, Mar 05, 2019, 8:27 PM UTC

I don't get it. I just tried a few online "cheap glasses" places. I want single vision, prescription (relatively low strength, nothing exotic), polarized sunglasses. Fashion doesn't really matter, it is just for driving.

zenni: $25 frames, cheapest polarization option: $67.89

eyebuydirect.com: $42 frames (malibu), plus polarization: $92

39dollarglasses.com: $39 frames (houston), cheapest polarization option +69, total $108 (more if I want anti-glare)

While these prices are better than my optometrist, where are people finding these "I got three pairs of prescription sunglasses for $50" stories?

Re: How badly are we being ripped off on eyewear? Former industry execs tell all

#189

Post by vl » Tue, Mar 05, 2019, 8:29 PM UTC

ssully wrote: post #118

beering wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I ended up with Warby Parker after decent experiences with Zenni. Warby Parker offers a home try-on service for free, where they ship you a pack of frames for you to try on (without prescription lenses). They also have a few retail stores. They still came out to be cheaper than Luxottica, and for something that I use for years, it ended up being worth it.

I've heard people dump on Warby Parker for being cheaply made, but honestly their stuff doesn't seem any worse then what my insurance covered at my optometrist. Also as a side note, my first pair from Warby Parker had the lenses go bad (they looked like they had dried water blotches on them, but it would never wash out. I assume some coating went bad) and they sent me a new pair for free. That was maybe 2 years ago a…

Warby Parkers are cheaply designed: nose pads are not affixed with screws, and thus are prone to being lost. Most (all?) hinges are rigid, without spring suspension. It’s kind of ridiculous for these prices (compare with Zenni and Costco).

Re: How badly are we being ripped off on eyewear? Former industry execs tell all

#190

Post by ssully » Tue, Mar 05, 2019, 8:33 PM UTC

nyolfen wrote: post #145

ssully wrote: post #118

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've heard people dump on Warby Parker for being cheaply made, but honestly their stuff doesn't seem any worse then what my insurance covered at my optometrist. Also as a side note, my first pair from Warby Parker had the lenses go bad (they looked like they had dried water blotches on them, but it would never wash out. I assume some coating went bad) and they sent me a new pair for free. That was maybe 2 years ago a…

the warby parker glasses i tried felt so cheap they seemed like costume glasses or something. i got a pair from zenni in the mail yesterday, and while they’re not as nice feeling as the pair i paid 10x for at my optometrist, they feel well made and look higher quality than what i got from wp.

Sounds like I might not be a good judge of quality frames then!

Might have to give Zenni a shot next time I need a new pair.