Smart seg discontinued?

[whoever]

Today I was told that the Smart Seg lens is no longer available. Is this true or is this just salesmanship? The university community in which I work has a strong preference for Smart Segs for several reasons. 1. An 8 1/2 x 11" page can be read without head turning, and the way a page is normally held (with bottom slanting toward the reader) the transition down the page and lens is natural, 2. Peripheral distance vision in preserved on the sides, 3. A computer monitor of rather large size can be viewed without much neck craning for moderate periods of time, 4. Although there is the usual FT transition line, if carefully prescribed, the adaptation time is minimal and the glasses can be used in nearly every life situation. These users are not price sensitive and normally have an additional pair of "reading" glasses that they use for long term computer use, or reading of books/journals/papers, optical instrument use, etc. In addition, there is no cosmetic/aesthetic bias in this community we serve. Function is paramount.

So, can the discontinuance of Smart Segs be confirmed by a "neutral" source? If they are, indeed, no longer available, what is the closest alternative lens? N.B. trifocals and progressive lenses without peripheral distance vision, and the other characteristics I noted, have uniformly been rejected.

[OPTIDONN]

Yup. I called SOLA several months back and they said that they had only a few pairs left and there were no plans to continue the line.

[Fezz]

Goneville. Outta here. Discotinuedville. I have a patient, who was just in, who would pay a small fortune to have a few of these made up for himself again.

Funny how these companies can have upteen many progressive and not discontinue the older style, but when they have something"different"...they let it fade away.

I guess marketing and practitioners killed this one.

[For-Life]

Goneville. Outta here. Discotinuedville. I have a patient, who was just in, who would pay a small fortune to have a few of these made up for himself again.

Funny how these companies can have upteen many progressive and not discontinue the older style, but when they have something"different"...they let it fade away.

I guess marketing and practitioners killed this one.

It is poor education of these products. They will make a million PALs and try to convince us that they are different, but do not really educate us about the good products. Examples:

- Task specific lenses like the Sola Access and Rodenstock Office
- Essilor was stocking a brown lens with a backside AR for dirt cheap but told no one, so there was no demand and they stopped supplying it
- Anti-Fatigue lens

Just all off the top of my head.

[OPTIDONN]

What the heck is an antifatigue lens? Never heard of it before.

[rinselberg]

Essilor UK Anti-Fatigue Lenses ... product page ... PDF format product brochure ... recent OptiBoard thread "anti.fatigue lenses"



Latest news stories from rinselberg™ ... "Eight Men Out" ... Radical technologies to counter global warming ... Red Sox fans have their eyes on "Dice-K" ... "Landmark" experiment with light delves into mysteries of quantum physics

[Chris Ryser]

Essilor Anti-Fatigue lenses are a patented design advanced single vision lens specially designed to relieve the symptoms of visual fatigue. The lenses support the wearer's accommodation efforts with an additional plus power at near vision (+ 0.60 D) and with instant adaptation. This provides a greater level of comfort for the wearer as the natural accommodation pattern is retained

Now that this is gone.................you have to go back to executive lenses, maybe even in trifocal or some large ST lenses........................or go the way of lateral distortion. :hammer:

[OPTIDONN]

Essilor UK Anti-Fatigue Lenses ... product page ... PDF format product brochure ... recent OptiBoard thread "anti.fatigue lenses"



Latest news stories from rinselberg™ ... "Eight Men Out" ... Radical technologies to counter global warming ... Red Sox fans have their eyes on "Dice-K" ... "Landmark" experiment with light delves into mysteries of quantum physics

Thanks:D

[whoever]

Goneville. Outta here. Discotinuedville. I have a patient, who was just in, who would pay a small fortune to have a few of these made up for himself again.

Funny how these companies can have upteen many progressive and not discontinue the older style, but when they have something"different"...they let it fade away.

I guess marketing and practitioners killed this one.

OK, so the Smart Seg is history. But what is the alternative? Is there any lens that even approximates the Smart Seg? As you said, users love them for good and proper reasons and would pay for a lens that duplicates its characteristics. What did you suggest this patient use?

[OPTIDONN]

Regular tri-focal. :D

[Fezz]

What did you suggest this patient use?

Common sense!

No, seriously:

We tried progressives after a thorough explanation of all pros and cons. The patient had more progressive knowledge after I was done with him than probably 3/4 of the morons who claim to be Opticans in the United States.

Of course he couldn't adapt. Who didn't see that coming, right.

Next we tried a 8x35 trifocal. = Success...sort of.

I have to hear about how these don't compare to the Smart Seg, blah, blah, blah........about every three days.

I also sold a pair of computer glasses with intermediate power in the distance and a reduced add at near(he holds things out pretty far) in a Ft-35.

We will be selling him sunglasses within the next three weeks. So, in this case I guess I am glad the SS is gone. I made a lot more money filling his needs!


PS. If you have not guessed by now.....Yes he is an Engineer. UGH

[DragonLensmanWV]

I never liked the Smart Seg, at least for adds over +2.00. Seems after that there was too much curvature similar to the top of a progressive lens. I had moved my father-in-law into Smart Segs from 8X35s and he liked them until his add went over +2. Pity there was so much promise in it, if they could have fabricated it without the abberations.

[whoever]

Common sense!

No, seriously:

We tried progressives after a thorough explanation of all pros and cons. The patient had more progressive knowledge after I was done with him than probably 3/4 of the morons who claim to be Opticans in the United States.

Of course he couldn't adapt. Who didn't see that coming, right.

Next we tried a 8x35 trifocal. = Success...sort of.

I have to hear about how these don't compare to the Smart Seg, blah, blah, blah........about every three days.

I also sold a pair of computer glasses with intermediate power in the distance and a reduced add at near(he holds things out pretty far) in a Ft-35.

We will be selling him sunglasses within the next three weeks. So, in this case I guess I am glad the SS is gone. I made a lot more money filling his needs!


PS. If you have not guessed by now.....Yes he is an Engineer. UGH

The problem is that, although you tried hard and made more money, you didn't really fill his needs. Which is why he still gives you flak whenever you meet him. He has legitimate cause, although he is griping at the wrong person. Now imagine the situation we are in, where there are 10^2 more engineers and scientists (and a couple are Nobel Prize winners and MacArthur Genius Grant recipients) , and lots of professors in endowed chairs in other fields who are upset in the same way. Guess who they come to, to complain. I suppose, some of them are capable of grinding their own lenses, but that is not an institutional solution. We have loose relationships with several retail providers to which they go, and these truly important people (not just in their own minds), hold the view that, as the primary health service provider, it is our responsibility, not the retailers', to make sure they get what they want. Trifocals and computer glasses don't cut it. From what you have said, which I appreciate, but fear the consequences of, there is no progressive grind or trifocal that will come close to the Smart Seg. Correct?

[OPTIDONN]

Nothing close at all! There was not that big of a market for them.

[OptiChick21]

That's funny you mention that, because we had a patient earlier this week to who loved his smart segs and I couldnt remember ordering one in years, so I called the lab and they indeed confirmed it had been discontinued about 2 years back! But those who had it sure did love it, so why discontinue it??? I suppose they may have teamed up with the PAL companies to force us into their lenses! HA, LOL. :hammer:

[OPTIDONN]

I think there may have been two reasons why they discontinued them First there were just not enough people wearing them to justify manufacturing and storing them, Second I'm sure they wanted to push the progressive lenses. Darryl may no for sure.

[Framebender]

and use the Varilux Liberty. Its not the Smart Seg, but I shifted 2 of them without the flack.

Good luck to you!!

:cheers:

[Dpareynolds]

Nothing close at all! There was not that big of a market for them.

What about the "atLast! " lens, by PixelOptics. Found and old lay chart on my wall, I used it twice I think a few years back. It has (had?, may be Disco too) far intermediate, intermediate and near contained in a 28m round seg, min 14mm, distance uncompromised.

[Judy Canty]

Pixel, et al, is gone.

[golfnut]

I think three rivers optical has something similar called the tro seg??