I like expensive sunglasses, but there are certainly diminishing returns the more you spend. I nearly always lose sunglasses, before breaking them. So, it can be a bit tough spending several hundred dollars on a pair of shades only to drop them overboard.
I personally feel the sweet spot is somewhere between $60-100. So, the following are the advantages of expensive glasses.
- Premium sunglasses have more durable and scratch-resistant coatings.
- The lenses used are more optically correct, with less distortion which can increase eye strain.
- Premium lenses offer better clarity, there is less cloudiness to the lenses.
- Frames on expensive sunglasses are typically made from high quality materials and to tighter margins.
- The warranty, and access to spare parts on expensive sunglasses is usally a lot better.
Do expensive sunglasses provide better polarization?
In my experience, no matter the cost polarization works similarly across all price ranges.
During my side-by-side comparison, the $20 service station specials had just as effective polarization as the $200+ Smiths, Oakley’s, and Ray-bans I have fished with.
So paying more is no guarantee that the polarization is going to be better, but it might be more durable.
There is a difference with regards to construction and long-term durability. In most situations, the polarizing film is sandwiched between two layers of lens material. So, it is unlikely to be damaged or rubbed off.
On some very cheap glasses, instead of using a sandwich film, they simply apply a polarizing filter to the outside of the lens leaving it exposed to damage.
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