Why are glasses so expensive? The industry prefers to keep that blurry (2019)
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Re: Why are glasses so expensive? The industry prefers to keep that blurry (2019)
#2It's wonderful for them. Everyone who has eyesight really wants to see clearly. After air, food, water, eyesight is kinda crucial.
Maybe we should tithe them in thanks for not making it way more expensive.
Re: Why are glasses so expensive? The industry prefers to keep that blurry (2019)
#3"Warby Parker recognized this as a business opportunity. I’m surprised others haven’t jumped in as well with reasonably priced eyewear."
This author is uninformed. Others have jumped in. And Warby Parker wasn't even the first.
15 years ago I would buy my single-vision prescription glasses from optical4less.com. The cost was $58 for 2 pairs, including worldwide shipping.
Today I buy my glasses from Zenni. Last month, I paid $176.75 total for two pairs of glasses, each with single-vision photochromic lenses (and one pair with additional blue light blocking).
Re: Why are glasses so expensive? The industry prefers to keep that blurry (2019)
#4Uh, they aren't. You go to Zenni Optical and it's a solved problem. You basically choose what you want to pay. Their $7 glasses work great. My every days were $25, until I decided to try out their UV blocking lenses, which bumped them to $50. My prescription sunglasses and prescription safety goggles were each $80.
If you've got a stronger prescription or need more than single vision lenses you'll pay a bit more. But nothing compared to the many hundreds by the time you walk out of an optician. Reasonable pricing completely changes the dynamic from bundling every what-if into a single pair, to one of why-not try something new - the way markets are supposed to work. Maybe next time I'll even try auto-darkening lenses, despite having had a lackluster experience with them decades ago.
Ctrl-F Zenni in the article show no results though. I know there are even some competitors by now, but the ones I've seen are still trying to gouge a bit.
Re: Why are glasses so expensive? The industry prefers to keep that blurry (2019)
#5Zenni glasses are 7$ and perfectly fine (I ordered a test set, which I now use as a spare)
My current set from them is a high index lens and anti glare, which were only $30 shipped. They’re going on 3 years now and still look new.
Re: Why are glasses so expensive? The industry prefers to keep that blurry (2019)
#6It's wonderful for them. Everyone who has eyesight really wants to see clearly. After air, food, water, eyesight is kinda crucial. Maybe we should tithe them in thanks for not making it way more expensive.
Should we tithe Industrial Zones for not dumping more chem waste?
Tip our wait staff for not spitting in our food?
Re: Why are glasses so expensive? The industry prefers to keep that blurry (2019)
#7Same reason medical care is so expensive in the US: Insurance and the art of the upsell. The provider gets to charge high prices because the bulk of the cost is covered by insurance and thus "hidden" from consumers. The insurance company gets a non-trivial cut of the pie, which pads the bill further. And in my experience, when you go in with something wrong with you, most doctors will recommend (or perform without asking) tests that aren't covered by insurance and you don't find that out until the bill arrives in the mail.
I have a pretty standard vision insurance plan and need glasses roughly every two years. (Two pairs: one for indoors, and sunglasses for outdoors and driving.) I go into an optometrist office and get my vision checked. $10 copay or whatever for the exam. Then the pain starts. The frame selection is terrible and it turns out that the only decent-looking frames and lenses cost 3-4x what insurance will cover. And insurance doesn't cover more-or-less "required" add-ons to lenses like anti-glare coatings. And the person selling you the glasses is _very_ good at convincing you that you need all the extras.
I did the math one time and I paid $200 per year for vision insurance to save $190 (including the cost of the exam) on one pair of glasses.
The last time I bought glasses, I took my (recent) prescription to an online eyelasses e-tailer website and purchased a pair that included all the fancy extras for $60 out the door. I don't _love_ them, but I can certainly live with them for the price.
Re: Why are glasses so expensive? The industry prefers to keep that blurry (2019)
#8Boycott Luxottica.
Anyway, reminds me of this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tpKWHSsBpnE; glasses with user adjustable lenses.
Removes the need to customise the product to the individual, and the need to see an optometrist - it reduces the cost of the product and makes 'prescription' glasses a viable option even in nations without adequate medical services.
Re: Why are glasses so expensive? The industry prefers to keep that blurry (2019)
#9It's wonderful for them. Everyone who has eyesight really wants to see clearly. After air, food, water, eyesight is kinda crucial. Maybe we should tithe them in thanks for not making it way more expensive.
Should we tithe Industrial Zones for not dumping more chem waste? Tip our wait staff for not spitting in our food?
Clearly not (and you're replying to a sarcastic comment).
Re: Why are glasses so expensive? The industry prefers to keep that blurry (2019)
#10I thought it was fairly well established that optometrists make most of their income from the sale of the frames as they have little to no control over how much they get for the examination, and the lens price determined by the lens manufacturer. The frames are the only thing that the optometrists get any significant margin on.
The moment you aren't buying the frame from the optometrist office the price craters, and has been that way for at least a couple of decades at this point.