Posted on 2nd Apr 2012 @ 6:00 PM

Most people feel cool when they put on a pair of aviator sunglasses. But they do not consider the crucial fact about the lenses of the sunglasses. The lenses are there to protect the eyes which are very important rather than the looks which may be secondary. The lenses are the most important selection of a pair of aviator sunglasses. The perfectly transparent lens must have even composition. The lens must be treated in a way to give maximum protection to the eyes from the harmful ultra violet rays of the sun.

There are different types of lenses of which three are the most common – 

1. Glass
2. Plastic
3. Polycarbonate

Earlier it was only the glass lenses but with the advancement in technology plastic and polycarbonate sunglasses lenses became available. It would be confusing to select the best for oneself with so many choices available in the market. 

Plastic Lenses

Plastic lenses are comfortable to be worn as they are very light in weight, it is this feature that has made it popular. Compared to glass lenses which are heavy and most of the times slip down the nose and has to be pushed back, plastic lenses do not have this problem as they are light and hold along. Scratches on the plastic lenses are however a common problem, but this too can be solved if scratch resistant coating is applied and kept clean to maintain scratch proof.

Polycarbonate Lenses

Polycarbonate Lenses are impact resistant though they are thinner and lighter, they are scratch proof and even if you drop a heavy steel ball on these polycarbonate lenses, it would not be damaged or broken into pieces. Polycarbonate lenses come under the categories of safety glasses that protect your eyes from injury. They offer resistance because these lenses are made of soft material and if proper care is not taken, they can be easily scratched. Polycarbonate lenses are the popular choice in today’s times as they offer a host of fashionable variety with the lightest weight.

Glass Lenses

Plastic or the polycarbonate lenses are very much lighter than the glass lenses. But the glass lenses do not need any scratch resistance coating. This is because glass itself is scratch proof.  If a pair of sunglasses with glass lenses is to be dropped then it will shatter into pieces.  Clear vision can be obtained only by glass lenses. Objects will be seen sharper than any other of the lens material. This is because of the visual acuity, the glass lenses are the best. Most people in today’s time do not really appreciate glass sunglasses as they find it too heavy to be carried around.