Glass or plastic lenses?

Glass is too breakable, and can get badly scratched and if your eyesight is really poor, as mine was before cataracts, glass lenses are very heavy and uncomfortaable to wear.

I've never had anything other than glass lenses - to be honest, it wouldn't have occurred to me to get plastic and it's certainly never been suggested by my optician.

Glass is heavier, but can be made up in the thinner high index lenses. I have a high (10.5 dioptres) prescription so always have glass. It does mean I'm limited to smaller frames though. No Deirdre Barlows for me!

Have always had glass lenses, including in the varifocals I have worn for 10 years. I didn't know plastic lenses existed

I stopped having glass lenses as they were so heavy in my metal frames and plastic was so much lighter. Now I have plastic frames and lenses. Hadn’t thought of switching back to glass. I have anti glare plastic lens and they only seem to last a couple of years before getting scratched and I have to get new frames as well.

I don't wear glass lenses. They are heavy. I wear very light Zeiss lenses that are thinned down.

Glass for me. I find them less smeary. I use a wipe on them every day and they're gleaming.

I have two identical pairs of glasses. One is glass and the other is polycarbonate.
They are in the same round frames and both were made in the thinest option.

I have a strong feeling that I like the glass ones best. There is something beautiful and sort of "serene" about them - but I have noticed recently that I'm sometimes looking for the other pair...
The weight difference is huge.

I don't have the anti-glare on either pair but do have "anti scratch". I'm rough with mine as I take them off for reading - and am a bit clumsy and often put them down with little thought. Even so, any scratching really is minimal - and certainly invisible whilst I'm wearing them.

I decided to update an old frame recently with my new lenses as my prescription has changed a little. I have chosen the Hoya ones this time. They are stunningly clear.

My optician has told me he would never recommend glass so near the eye now we have other options. He says if you fall forward the chances of serious eye damage is high. Polycarbonate is 10 times more impact-resistant than glass (or standard plastic). I'm not sure about the PNX 1.53/ Hoya ones - but they are the lightest of all.

Plastic always. They are less likely to shatter in an accident. You can recycle old prescription spectacles at places like SpecSavers, so there's no need to worry about plastic pollution. Also, they are lighter.

Polycarb for me and because they do scratch, I like to change them for new ones at every eye test. Expensive as they are varifocals but relatively cheap on a daily basis. I cycle and having glass spectacles could be catastrophic for my vision

I do prefer glass but have my sensible head on

I much prefer plastic as they are so much lighter, Specsavers do offer a scratchproof coating.

I hadn’t realised you can get glass lenses any more !

Message deleted by Gransnet. Here's a link to our Talk guidelines.