Transitions Vantage lenses butterfly on sunflower crisp sharp image Visual Q Eyecare Melbourne South Yarra RichmondEvery so often in the glasses trade we come across a new product that blows our minds, and we at Visual Q Eyecare are proud to announce our minds and their accompanying eyes have just experienced such an event! If you’ve heard of Transitions lenses then you know that there are glasses that can be worn indoors, and then when you go outside into the sunshine they automatically tint to become like sunglasses. The brand new Transitions Vantage lenses go one step further – when you go outdoors they adjust both tint and polarisation.

Transitions Vantage variable polarisation lenses Visual Q Eyecare Melbourne South Yarra Richmond
The level of polarisation varies automatically depending on how much glare there is.

What does this mean? It means a pair of everyday use glasses that is only slightly tinted when indoors (imperceptible to the majority of people), can now automatically change to become tinted and polarised lenses. The results are amazing. The polarisation is variable, which means it adjusts its level according to how much UV glare there is, while at the same time the level of tint adjusts to the amount of overall brightness surrounding you. If you’re a lover of technology like we are, this is a truly amazing step in glasses evolution.

Transitions now have 3 main types of lenses. Transitions VI are totally clear lenses indoors, but they go dark outdoors, and yet quickly fade back to clear once inside again. Transitions XTRActive are the darkest transitional tinted lens available, and they have the ability to activate while behind a car’s UV coated windscreen. Now, Transitions Vantage lenses round out the equation by offering an everyday glasses lens that uses variable polarisation to create crisp, clear vision in a glare-filled environment.

I bought my first pair of Transitions lenses 2 years ago – they were the Transitions V lenses, and I will honestly never go back to wearing so-called normal ‘clear’ lenses. You should see some of my friends’ faces when I go outside into the sunshine and my ‘normal’ glasses magically transfer right before their eyes into tinted lenses. It’s priceless!

The ‘magic’ in these lenses is the photochromic material. I often joke that this stuff ‘squints for you’, because you no longer have to squint yourself. Unlike polarised sunglasses that use a permanent layer of film on the lenses, these new Vantage lenses still have the ability to work as everyday glasses. Awesome.

Transitons Vantage Lenses vs Standard lenses Glare Test Visual Q Eyecare Melbourne South Yarra Richmond
The difference between Transitons Vantage lenses and standard lenses: Crisper and sharper vision when outdoors.

I do recommend owning a pair of very dark polarised sunglasses like those from Maui Jim or Serengeti if you plan on driving long distances or hanging out at the beach all day, but in terms of making life easier by not having to change glasses every time you go from an indoor space to outdoors and then back again, these Transitions Vantage lenses are a real technological breakthrough. If you’re an early adopter, or you spend a lot of time outdoors, come down to Visual Q Eyecare in South Yarra and we’ll show you the power of this brand new technology.

By Simon Ch’ng