Varilux S Series

[lind2020]

I wonder why anyone would say anything is impossible..

Pdersonally I seldom sell any essilor lenses, but they are good lenses as a whole. If this lens was far & away better I would consider selling it as I would any lens. I, for one, don't hype lenses to my patients so I couldn't care less what the pre-release ad hype is.

[gmc]

We received a marketing piece from E today about the S series that said absolutely nothing.

[chip anderson]

Gee This post has enough vim, vigor and vitrol to the point where I don't have say anything.

Chip

[Robert_S]

There are a lot of things I dislike about Essilor. The quality of their progressive designs is not one of them.

[sharpstick777]

Welcome to Optiboard Big V

I agree, its marketing poohy. One of the reps here is billing the lens as having NO distortion. Impossible even in SV as even SV creates distortion.
Any lens with a variable power will inherently create some kind of distortion.

Although Edge to Edge clarity is possible in one zone, its not possible in all 3, especially as the add power increases.

My early guess is that its some combination of the Definity and Shamir designs, and will be a very soft design. It may have usable focus in a large amount of area, but it either compromise by a loss of straight on VA or a lot of geometric distortions.

I don't consider the Exec to be distortion free either, that ledge renders a large area of the lens unusable. As well, the image jump is huge.

Doesn't anyone else see how this "limitless" vision stuff from Essilor is marketing? First of all, this PAL is FRONT molded? Where is the digital OR FreeForm in that? Second, optically it is IMPOSSIBLE to get rid of swim and sway in a PAL. There is a lens with distance, intermediate, and near zones with no swim or sway....its called an executive tri-focal.
Big V, ABOC-AC

[sharpstick777]

I wonder why anyone would say anything is impossible..

Its impossible to have an add power and eliminate distortion. With Free-form I can reduce distortion, I can move it, and I can choose whether it appears as geometric or off-focus areas, but in every lens there is inherent distortion, even Single Vision. Any lens that has an add power will inherently have some kind of distortion where the power varies, even if the zone is clear, it will still contribute to geometric or spacial changes.

[sharpstick777]

There is a benefit to moving some of the add to the front on high plus powers, as a Backside FF lens had to drift farther from an ideal base curve with the add on the back in power over a +3-4. However, any concave curve on a convex surface (front side add) increases distortion at a relatively higher rate than a convex curve next to another convex curve on the back. You do lose some center of rotation on a backside add in a myope, but you also lose an enormous amount of distortion over the alternative, a concave curve on a convex front. In most cases the trade off of backside add reduces distortion significantly for myopes and low power hyperopes even with a loss of central rotation.

Totally agree. Especially the part about using front side adds on moderate - high plus Rx's. That category doesn't like totally backside PAL's as well. With total backside designs, my thoughts are that you're creating a bi-convex design in the umbilic of the lens that can't follow the center of rotation as well as a concave/convex design for plus distance Rx's. That's my personal experience along with years of try them on patients. Sometimes split designs work best, ( Definity and other E designs, Hoya has one similar, not as good imho..) So E does have some things I won't leave out of my tool box.

My rule of thumb on who won't get a totally backside PAL; No hyperopic's and if they aren't myopic enough that their distance power is 1/2 equal to their add power. (Their spherical equivalent.) YMMV.

[sharpstick777]

IMO, a variable corridor design is a compromise, not a benefit.

A variable corridor works best in higher adds in shorter corridors, it enables the design to maximize every step of the intermediate in relation to OC, both in power and ensuring the declination angle is ideal.

[sharpstick777]

I don't think anyone hates the lens DrHass, its the marketing of a progressive as "distortion free" that we find objectionable. I hope its a good lens personally, most of the last few Essilor launches have been disappointing. I do know it can't live up to the hype, since we haven't made a SV vision lens that's distortion free, its hard to imagine that Essilor has somehow made the jump to distortion free progressives.

And do any of you know anything at all about this new lens that you hate so much?

[jspayneii]

Doesn't Hoya also market their new digital lenses as "Distortion Free Optics"?

[NCspecs]

My frustration with Essilor and also with the new Unity lens from VSP is that NO ONE can articulate to me why these lenses are so awesome. My Hoya rep can tell me about the science behind his product, he knows about my lab background. So does my Shamir Rep and my Zeiss Rep. They all talk to me like I am an Optician, not a sales person. I pressed the Unity Rep for more information regarding the design and the fabrication of his product and he ended up having a actual hissy fit (I kid you not!) and stormed out of my lab in a huff saying, "Well if you don't want to fit it, then fine! Don't!"

Really? REALLY?

I don't have a particular beef with Essilor, per se, but I get tired of being fed marketing instead of actual fact and science. I end up doing the research on my own only to find that I will be just as well served to keep fitting my patients in the product I fully understand like the Individual, The Autograph II, or the iD Lifestyle, and many others. We understand technical product here- even if we do wear skirts!

[Judy Canty]

We understand technical product here- even if we do wear skirts!

Deleted.

[KITT]

Im surprised they still havn't launched this lens yet, first saw it quite a while ago. For anyone in a lab you'll see it's called the Gx or G7 as a trade name. No engravings on the lens except for 2 'x' marks at the very edge either side. Quite an odd lens I have to say, definately not a normal pal that's for sure.

[sharpstick777]

I don't have a particular beef with Essilor, per se, but I get tired of being fed marketing instead of actual fact and science. I end up doing the research on my own only to find that I will be just as well served to keep fitting my patients in the product I fully understand like the Individual, The Autograph II, or the iD Lifestyle, and many others. We understand technical product here- even if we do wear skirts!

You and me both. Just an FYI, we found a way to create lens maps for Free-form last fall for the first time.

[sharpstick777]

Really? REALLY?

I don't have a particular beef with Essilor, per se, but I get tired of being fed marketing instead of actual fact and science. I end up doing the research on my own only to find that I will be just as well served to keep fitting my patients in the product I fully understand like the Individual, The Autograph II, or the iD Lifestyle, and many others. We understand technical product here- even if we do wear skirts!

You and me both.... except for the skirt part.
Just an FYI, we found a way to create lens maps for Free-form last fall for the first time. Its been a great help.