One Week with Gunnars

One week ago today, my Gunnar Optiks Phenom glasses arrived. Lately I've been suffering from headaches on days that I spend the whole day in front of a screen, and I had heard good things about the Gunnar glasses. I was pretty skeptical of some of the fantastical claims, but it was worth checking out to see if they would help. Also, I really didn't want to go to an eye doctor, so there's that too. I've never worn glasses before, so this was a new experience for me.

I've been using the Gunnar's for the past week pretty extensively both at work, where I work as a tech writer and editor, and at home, where I spend most of my time gaming or writing blog posts. So here's the good, the bad, and the ugly about my week with Gunnar's.

The Good

  • These things are comfortable. I've spent 12+ hours wearing them on some of the days this week, and I've not gotten tired.
  • I haven't had a headache since I got the glasses. I used to end up with bloodshot eyes by the end of the night, but I no longer look like I'm smoking the reefer at work.
  • The magnification is easy to over look, but it's actually really nice. It's not as strong as most reading glasses, but it's just enough to kind of make everything pop.
  • They're sturdy. Again, I don't have much to compare them against, but they're significantly more solid than my $12 Wal Mart sunglasses.
  • They don't look as goofy as I had expected.

The Bad

  • They smudge all the time. Seriously. Is this what having glasses is like? Cause it's really annoying.
  • I get a little dizzy if I switch back and forth between something close and far away. I'm typing this while sitting on the couch, and if I look at the TV, I find myself getting a little dizzy. I blame it on the fact that I have pretty good vision and that my eyes are fighting the magnification.
  • They really are only good in front of a screen. My glasses fell off the top of my head onto my face while I was walking from my car and I almost fell over because the change was so dramatic.
  • Because I spend time in front of the computer both at work and at home, I do have to move the glasses around a lot. A hard side case would have been nice to have been included. They didn't even send a cleaning cloth, just a simple bag.

The Ugly

Taking selfies is a pain the neck. People do this all the time?
Imgur

So, would I recommend Gunnars? Definitely. I still have 20 days or so where I can send them back, but I can't forsee finding a reason that I'd want to do that. I don't know that they're for everyone, but if you spend an excessive amount of time staring at screens like I do, they might be worth trying out, especially if you're finding yourself with bloodshot eyes and headaches like I was. And it's the same way I look at my good ear plugs - You only get one set of eyes or ears, isn't it worth taking care of them?