Varilux Liberty 3.0

Our Essilor rep came in and let us know of a new lens they have, a progressive lens for the emerging presbyope, Libery 3.0. It only comes with an add up to +1.50 and it is a K level progressive lens. They said it has "path optimizer technology" to give your patient a wider zone in the reading area. Which led me to ask the rep if you limited any progressive lens to +1.50 add you are going to have a wider reading area with less distortion right?

My guess is it's just a super soft progressive design that allows for more 20/happy vision in the near zone because of the lower adds. What more can you expect from a K level?

Essilor marketing statement from Vision Monday: "“It’s no secret to eyecare professionals that these emerging presbyopes need a Varilux progressive lens, but the challenge is to overcome patient objections. That is why we are expanding the Varilux range with Varilux Liberty 3.0—to increase accessibility and support doctors in placing newly presbyopic patients in a complete visual solution.”

I think it's just Essilor wanting to expand the Varilux brand to the lower tiers and lower-cost entry-level customers and capture some of that market. Doctors and patients are embracing progressive lenses earlier and more widely, and a lot of those patients, and their opticians, are looking for simpler lower-cost progressives to ease them into the progressive lens space. I'm sure there are a lot of opticians enticed by the now-covered "standard progressive" category K to make transitioning into progressives a price-neutral option for their customers, but who wants to put their 40-year-old digital age new presbyope in a traditional Adaptar or Natural that was designed when that patient was in middle school? Hoya, Zeiss, Kodak, IOT, and VSP all have their own digital design low-cost K progressives, so those brands are capturing all the customers in that space. Essilor has nothing to offer other than the poorly marketed and already almost 10-year-old Ideal, or the "digital" versions of the ancient Adaptar/Natural/Ovation. (Does anyone use those??) This Varilux lens will give them a new product launch with a branded marketable name in the low-cost space, and a way to hook a younger and more price-conscious demographic into the Varilux name.

And if you're a real Essilor cynic, you'd be forgiven for thinking it might just be a rebranded Ideal...

I can't find any substantial difference between these sales aids.

Ideal: https://info.icarelabs.com/hubfs/Ess...20Brochure.pdf
Liberty 3.0: https://ecp.essilor.co.uk/products/l...ux-liberty-3-0

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Originally Posted by NAICITPO

Our Essilor rep came in and let us know of a new lens they have, a progressive lens for the emerging presbyope, Libery 3.0. It only comes with an add up to +1.50 and it is a K level progressive lens. They said it has "path optimizer technology" to give your patient a wider zone in the reading area. Which led me to ask the rep if you limited any progressive lens to +1.50 add you are going to have a wider reading area with less distortion right?

My guess is it's just a super soft progressive design that allows for more 20/happy vision in the near zone because of the lower adds. What more can you expect from a K level?

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Just more marketing mumbo jumbo. Low adds always are softer than high adds, regardless of design.

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Originally Posted by lensmanmd

Just more marketing mumbo jumbo. Low adds always are softer than high adds, regardless of design.

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My favorite name for those is the Shamir "My First PAL"

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Originally Posted by DanLiv

And if you're a real Essilor cynic, you'd be forgiven for thinking it might just be a rebranded Ideal...

I can't find any substantial difference between these sales aids.

Ideal: https://info.icarelabs.com/hubfs/Ess...20Brochure.pdf
Liberty 3.0: https://ecp.essilor.co.uk/products/l...ux-liberty-3-0

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Though the marketing for both lenses sounds the same, I was just informed by my Essilor rep that the Liberty 3.0 is a new design, different from the Ideal, and that in keeping with the Varilux idea of superior performance it is a dual-add front and back digital design, not the spherical front surface full backside like the Ideal.

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Originally Posted by DanLiv

Though the marketing for both lenses sounds the same, I was just informed by my Essilor rep that the Liberty 3.0 is a new design, different from the Ideal, and that in keeping with the Varilux idea of superior performance it is a dual-add front and back digital design, not the spherical front surface full backside like the Ideal.

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Some good info, thank you. Was kind of what I was looking for when I talked to our rep.

Good thread. Just got the rep's presentation.

It's a valid idea...training wheels PALs for less, since it's tough to screw up a +0.75 add.

I endorse the idea of getting people into PALs soon as possible, and one less hurdle is nice.

I especially like the reduced power offering.

I wouldn't consider it over a +0.75 add, though, so...