What Are Zeiss Lenses? Are They Better Than Competitors?
History of the Zeiss Company
The company was founded in Jena, Germany, in 1846 by a man named Carl Zeiss. His father was a wood turner, but Zeiss soon turned his own talents to grinding glass. He was hiring employees and taking apprentices quickly, and the company grew rapidly. Zeiss’ focus was on producing high-quality microscopes. He joined forces with designer Ernst Abbe to produce precise scientific instruments. The company eventually expanded beyond microscopes to produce camera lenses, binoculars, eyeglass lenses, and other optical instruments. In fact, in 1923, they built the world’s first planetarium. Now, Zeiss is a global company and a familiar name to many.
What Does Zeiss Do Today?
Today, the Zeiss company produces precision optics in a variety of fields. In addition to eyeglasses, Zeiss is known for camera lenses, microscopes (optical and electron), spectroscopy, and other precision optics. They build small to mid-sized planetariums. Zeiss also produces rifle scopes for the hunting community. Zeiss binoculars and spotting scopes are considered amongst the best for nature observation. Most major films are made using Zeiss camera lenses and no less than thirty-five Nobel prize winners used Zeiss microscopes. If you need cataract surgery, your doctor will probably be using a Zeiss microscope.
Above all, Zeiss is known for products that precisely fit the needs of the people who need them. Which, of course, is a philosophy that makes them one of the best manufacturers of eyeglass and sunglass lenses. Although Zeiss is often better known for things like binoculars and microscopes, their greatest contribution to the world is in helping people with poor natural vision see better and more naturally.
What Sets Zeiss Apart?
Most lens manufacturers make reading glasses, progressives, and distance glasses. There is a tendency to focus on close up and far away that leaves many people needing a second or third set of glasses for today’s digital world. Zeiss lenses include a much wider spread of specialty lenses designed to cater to your pathology and your lifestyle in a more precise way. According to Gerhard Kelch, Head of Optical Design at Zeiss Vision Care, Zeiss’ philosophy is to “provide eyeglass wearers with clear, natural vision in all directions, not just straight-ahead.”
The combination of their experience and modern technology allows them to design and produce completely individualized lenses that precisely match your prescription. With help from your eye doctor, Zeiss lenses can give you almost as good vision as people who don’t need to wear glasses. Their lenses significantly reduce the compromises you have to make when you wear glasses, particularly in night vision and peripheral vision. Here are some features that set Zeiss apart:
- High levels of customization that provide better peripheral vision and reduce distortions that can cause problems for sports wearers or reduce your enjoyment of 3D movies. Improved peripheral vision means less moving of your head to see better and less visual strain overall.
- Zeiss lenses are very light, even if you have a high prescription. You don’t have to compromise on vision to avoid “coke bottle” lenses. This also reduces the risk of having to buy heavier frames than you would prefer because of the weight or thickness of your lenses, a compromise that often has to be made by people with astigmatism.
- All Zeiss lenses have sunglass level UV protection, ensuring that your eyes are protected from UV even if you don’t need glare protection that day. While most eyeglasses now provide some UV protection, Zeiss lenses are all designed to provide the highest levels.
- Lenses are flatter, reducing the fisheye or bugeye effect to a minimum. This gives you a more natural look and that can, in turn, improve your self-confidence and even your success.
- The high level of precision also improves night vision, contrast and color vision. Zeiss uses a special measuring instrument called i.Scription to help your eye doctor give you a better prescription that reduces image noise (which causes glare and halo effects at night), sharpens contrast and brightens color.
- High-performance coatings protect your glasses from scratches and dust adhesion as well as reducing glare when driving or using electronic devices.
- Again because of the high level of precision, Zeiss can provide you with optimal vision even if you like batwing or other unusual frames. You can have Zeiss lenses with the designer frames that fit your personal look and style, whether for everyday wear or for specialist uses.
What Specialty Lenses Does Zeiss Sell?
In addition to the standard single vision lenses used by most eyeglass wearers, Zeiss sells a variety of specialty lenses to fit specific lifestyles or needs:
- Progressive lenses. Zeiss progressive lenses have a near zone that works better with digital devices than most traditional progressives, and an advanced design that reduces blurring in the transition zone. Their design also makes it easier for first-time wearers to adapt to their new glasses.
- Digital Lens. These glasses are specifically designed to reduce digital eye strain. They are primarily for people who spend a lot of time working with a smartphone or e-reader. These days, though, that is most of us. Teenagers and “digital natives” are most likely to appreciate glasses that are designed to work better with their smartphone.
- DriveSafe. For people who drive a lot, Zeiss DriveSafe lenses (which can be progressive) are designed to minimize visual stress when driving and make shifting your viewing focus easy. They are also designed to reduce the effect of reflections from street lamps or headlights, and to accommodate your pupil size when driving at night or through a tunnel. The anti-glare coating also resists scratches.
- OfficeLens. These glasses are designed for people who spend a lot of time sitting at a desk. Because they are specially designed for office use, they reduce physical stress caused by poor ergonomics (back and neck pain caused by holding your head at an odd angle, for example). They are optimized for the distance of your computer screen, rather than closer or further, or having a narrow progressive channel that affects the angle at which you hold your head. They come in three varieties, one for people who read a lot at work, one for people who use a computer monitor all the time, or ones that are for people with customer contact. Each variety has different optimal visual ranges designed to reduce eye strain, ergonomic issues, and overall fatigue.
- EnergizeMe eyeglass lenses. These are specially designed as backup glasses for contact lens wearers – something no other company has done. They’re designed to resemble your lenses closely while giving your eyes a break from the strain that can come from wearing contacts for an extended period.
- Sunglasses and Sport Glasses. Zeiss will tint any pair of glasses to make sunglasses. They also offer proper wrap sports sunglasses…including with progressive lenses…which are designed to negate the tendency for wrap glasses to significantly reduce peripheral vision. They offer a wide variety of tints so you can choose the one which provides you with optimum glare protection and looks good as well. They can also provide a mirror coating. Zeiss lenses include self-tinting glasses that work both indoors and outdoors.
Zeiss also provides a variety of optional lens coatings. Their Premium coating includes ion technology to make the lens harder and more scratch resistant (as well as easier to clean) and anti-glare coating. They also provide blue light protection for digital natives. Protecting your eyes from blue light can reduce age-related vision effects and significantly improve your sleep. You should also use Zeiss lens cleaning wipes or solution and cloth to minimize scratching and extend the life of your eyeglasses.
Your vision is very important, and it is worth spending a bit extra for high-quality glasses. You should talk to your ophthalmologist about whether any of the Zeiss specialty lenses are right for you. For example, if you are an avid cyclist, you might find a pair of Zeiss sports sunglasses ideal to improve your performance and safety on the road. If you spend all day in front of a computer screen, OfficeLens is likely to be right for you. You should always make sure your eye doctor knows about any aspect of your lifestyle that affects your vision, such as how much you drive and what sports or hobbies you engage in.
Zeiss lenses are premium lenses that are designed with a much higher level of precision than most. As your vision is one of the most important things you have, then it is worth getting your lenses from a company trusted by hunters, naturalists, and scientists the world over to provide them with the highest precision optics. If you want to know more, then contact Eye Consultants of Atlanta and schedule your next vision exam today.
