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IXI's autofocusing lenses are almost ready to replace multifocal glasses

engadget.com

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Re: IXI's autofocusing lenses are almost ready to replace multifocal glasses

#11

Post by alsetmusic »

In the last two to three years, I've hit a point where I need to take off my glasses (near-sighted, can't see things far away) to read my phone. I can still make out the text with them on, but it's physically uncomfortable and holding it at a distance helps.

I've been thinking about the existence of bifocals and how they aren't ideal as I come to terms with the inconvenience of removing my glasses and putting them back on repeatedly as I task switch. This sounds pretty great and I hope it's not smoke and mirrors (given enough time, science fiction tends to become reality, so I'm hopeful).

Re: IXI's autofocusing lenses are almost ready to replace multifocal glasses

#12

Post by heikkilevanto »

I am not so sure about the eye tracking and autofocus stuff, but would love a simple focus knob on the frames to adjust instead of changing to a different pair of glasses. I suspect the tracking and focusing electronics must be somewhat clumsy and a battery life of a single day sounds suboptimal for me.

Re: IXI's autofocusing lenses are almost ready to replace multifocal glasses

#13

Post by isityettime »

dmayle wrote: post #10
isityettime wrote: post #9

I'm under 40, recently had cataract surgery to address mild cararacts, and deeply regret that choice. I strongly feel I lost more than I gained, and now need to carry multiple pairs of glasses every time I go out to engage many common activities. Unfortunately I don't have presbyopia at all (my surgery still left me myopic) and my inability to change focus distance is drastically more severe than what happens natural…

You can swap out your default lenses with multifocal lenses... I use multifocal contact lenses, and my wife and my mother both had the surgery. My wife got the panoptix (no need for glasses at all) and my mother got vivity (just need reading glasses). At night, there are halos with the panoptix lenses (same with the multifocal contact lenses), the severity is not always the same per-person, and it bothers some people…

I'm unfortunately not a candidate for multifocal intraocular lenses due to other problems with my eyes, otherwise I would have gone with them for the first surgery.

Multifocal contacts are probably not a good long-term fit for those same reasons, and there's the same problem with progressive lenses in glasses. Old-school bifocals are okay, but limited in the usual way.

Re: IXI's autofocusing lenses are almost ready to replace multifocal glasses

#14

Post by RickJWagner »

heikkilevanto wrote: post #12

I am not so sure about the eye tracking and autofocus stuff, but would love a simple focus knob on the frames to adjust instead of changing to a different pair of glasses. I suspect the tracking and focusing electronics must be somewhat clumsy and a battery life of a single day sounds suboptimal for me.

Add to that the blinking LEDs that track eye movements. No thanks.

Re: IXI's autofocusing lenses are almost ready to replace multifocal glasses

#15

Post by gedy »

pavel_lishin wrote: post #8

Honestly, even if they could shift focus via some sort of "command" - a muscle tick or something - that would be a game changer as it is. Every time I play D&D, I have to keep taking off and putting on my glasses so I can read my notes, and see my players' faces clearly. (I'm aware of the multifocal glasses mentioned in the article; they didn't work well for me.)

I'm in a similar situation but found that getting "computer glasses" made which use the near prescription (and are not for long distance) work well for this. (I run D&D as well lol) I could not handle multifocal at all, was disorienting for me.

Re: IXI's autofocusing lenses are almost ready to replace multifocal glasses

#17

Post by sva_ »

RickJWagner wrote: post #14
heikkilevanto wrote: post #12

I am not so sure about the eye tracking and autofocus stuff, but would love a simple focus knob on the frames to adjust instead of changing to a different pair of glasses. I suspect the tracking and focusing electronics must be somewhat clumsy and a battery life of a single day sounds suboptimal for me.

Add to that the blinking LEDs that track eye movements. No thanks.

Are you one of the few people who are able to perceive infrared light?

Re: IXI's autofocusing lenses are almost ready to replace multifocal glasses

#18

Post by linsomniac »

alsetmusic wrote: post #11

In the last two to three years, I've hit a point where I need to take off my glasses (near-sighted, can't see things far away) to read my phone. I can still make out the text with them on, but it's physically uncomfortable and holding it at a distance helps. I've been thinking about the existence of bifocals and how they aren't ideal as I come to terms with the inconvenience of removing my glasses and putting them ba…

I'm at the same point you are, and a couple years ago I ended up getting bifocals, and let me tell you it's absolutely worth it! I ended up getting "multi-tasking bifocals" (what my glasses place called them), which are basically normal glasses with the lower area a second prescription for reading the phone. There are others that have 3 areas (reading at the bottom, distance a small spot in the middle, and then a middle ground elsewhere).

I didn't really want to get bifocals because it's what old people wear ;-). But it's so much better with them.

The glasses place (CostCo Optical) guy was kind of a jerk about it, all but saying "you're going to wreck your car if you use these for anything but at your desk", but I just "yeah, yeah"ed him, I like my prescription dialed back a bit from max power for day-to-day use.

If you can afford it, maybe give them a try? Zenni and other onlines might make them affordable enough to just try?

Re: IXI's autofocusing lenses are almost ready to replace multifocal glasses

#19

Post by russdill »

iandanforth wrote: post #2

Putting two adaptive dynamic systems next to each other is tricky. Your eyes and these glasses could easily create a positive or negative feedback loop or begin oscillating. So while cool I hope they have some experienced controls people on staff to detect and prevent such things.

That's the beauty of eye tracking. The two adjustments are orthogonal. You don't cross and uncross your eyes to adjust focus.

Re: IXI's autofocusing lenses are almost ready to replace multifocal glasses

#20

Post by russdill »

pavel_lishin wrote: post #8

Honestly, even if they could shift focus via some sort of "command" - a muscle tick or something - that would be a game changer as it is. Every time I play D&D, I have to keep taking off and putting on my glasses so I can read my notes, and see my players' faces clearly. (I'm aware of the multifocal glasses mentioned in the article; they didn't work well for me.)

They do! The command is, cross your eyes a little bit
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