LensPriceCompare Blog

There is a concept that is often used in economics that more people should probably apply to their daily life.  It’s the measure of the marginal value of something.  When you are talking about time, you can measure the marginal value of your time in terms of the last hour that you worked.

If you think about it, the value of your time is worth as much as you make per hour.  When you sit down and think about that, weigh this against the amount of time it can take for you to purchase your contact lenses.  If you are spending just an hour (and you would be lucky) when going out to buy contacts, you can add that to the price.

Even if you were able to purchase contacts online at the same price that you would find in retail locations, it seems that he would be much better off.  On top of the fact that you save that marginal value of your time, you also get to enjoy the process much more.  You can shop in your pajamas and you can do it at any time of day.

When you start to consider that additional savings are available online, it really starts to add up.  If you factor in free shipping and coupons that are available in many cases, you’ll be doing very well in terms of price.

It is important to understand that you have to have a recent prescription.  Even for people who have a stable prescription, it’s important to you stay on top of it.  You can get better prices but purchasing contact lenses in bulk but if you find you can use them, they end up got been a good value at all.  If you are clever, you can take proper economic advantage and order contacts online.

Most of the debate that surrounds purchasing contact lenses on the Internet or having them shipped by mail has to do with the cost.  Of course, you will find that in most cases, you are going to pay less for contacts that are purchased this way.  If you think about it, this is just the beginning of the benefit.

Every time you go to one of the big retail optical chains to get your contact lenses, something can go wrong.  If the trip goes perfectly smoothly, it costs you a fair amount of time and also is going to set you back in terms of transportation costs.

That alone would be enough reason to sit comfortably in your home at the computer and order contacts by mail.  It generally only takes a few minutes and you don’t even have to put on a pair of shoes if you don’t want to.

When it can really end up costing you is the situation where you go to the retail store and something goes wrong.  It can be something major like an automobile accident (not that likely) or finding out that they don’t have the stock or variety that you’re looking for (now getting a little more probable).

Maybe you end up getting stuck in traffic and missing the closing time of the store.  Instead of rushing, you can leisurely make a beverage and sit down at the computer to start shopping.  You can take as much or as little time as you want and you can do this at any time of day.  Whether you’re an early riser or a night owl, you can take advantage of the stores that are open all the time.  What’s even better about doing it this way is the fact that as noted, you will generally spend less than you would retail.

This is a term that you’ll hear used frequently in the contact lens industry.  It can be a little confusing for some people as there are different variations of tinted contacts, some are intended to change your eye color and some are only tinted for ease of use.

There are far more contact lenses that are tinted so that they are easier to handle.  You’ll find that the tinting is extremely light and you won’t even notice a difference in your eye color when you put them in.  There is simply a pigment infused in the material used to make the contact lenses so that you can find them easily in solution for instance.

You’ll find that there are also tinted contacts that are made to enhance your eye color.  You might hear them referred to as slightly opaque or lightly tinted.  They may include something that will make blue eyes and lower or perhaps slightly changed the hue of your eyes from a brown to a greenish brown.

The third variety that you’ll discover is something called opaque lenses.  These are going to have a very heavy tint to them, and can actually change the color of your eyes.  Sometimes these won’t even have an effect on your vision but are worn purely for fashionable purposes.  Even when that is the case, you have to have a prescription for them.

People are sometimes worried that there will be negative effects from the use of tinted contacts or that they might harm their eyes in some way.  You can feel very confident when using these as the pigment that is included will not do any harm at all.  Your tinted lenses will work almost exactly the same way that any other contacts would.  In some cases, they can prevent some light from getting in and you can talk to your eye care professional about this.

There was a time years ago when night and day contacts first made their debut in the market.  Back then, different materials were used in the construction and many contact wearers found that they ended up with the irritation.  It seems like the original night and day contacts were a little bit before their time.

Now, there are silicone hydrogel versions that provide far more oxygen to the eyes than these original varieties.  It has allowed people to wear their contacts for up to 30 days at a time without needing to take them out.  Many people find that they can even sleep with their contacts in without any discomfort.  Even better, there are a wide variety of types that can suit some of the strongest prescriptions.

Of course, this is not for everyone.  Even if you have night and day contacts, you may find that sleeping in them does not work for you.  That doesn’t necessarily mean that you should not consider them.  Because of their excellent oxygen permeability, they can still be a comfortable option even if you only wear them during the day.

There are versions that go for one week, two weeks or a month and what you choose will depend on your budget and the discussions that you have with your eye care professional.  One thing that you should definitely avoid is wearing them for periods longer than the manufacturer suggests.

These can be a good option for people who have considered Lasik eye surgery for the convenience but are still a little nervous about the procedure.  The convenience that you enjoy with night and day contacts is going to be quite close to what you would experience following eye surgery.  Of course, you’ll still have to change them every once in a while, but it is a significantly better situation than the lenses of 20 or 30 years ago.

Some people will simply purchase their contact lenses and not give much thought to whether or not they can get a better deal somewhere else.  If you have consistently purchased from your eye care professional, it’s very likely that you have paid more than you need to.

There’s a certain comfort level that comes from purchasing from the person who does your prescription.  It’s also fairly convenient.  You may want to start with this when you are first getting contact lenses, but when you start to compare your contacts price against what is available, you will soon realize that you can save some money.

Going to one of the large retail chains usually won’t get you the cheapest price.  You can rely on good service when you go there in most cases, but you will be paying additional for it.  There are certain places that have retail locations which will have fairly good prices.  Some of the stores that require annual memberships and sell in very large volumes will be able to purchase enough contact lenses to be quite competitive.

For the most part, the cheapest prices are found online, when you compare the contacts price for most online retailers, you’ll find that their lack of overhead will translate into a better deal.  There is also something to be said for the convenience of this method.

Not all prices online are the same.  When you look at a comparison website, you’ll immediately see that the prices for the exact same pair of contact lenses can vary.  A retailer that offers a certain brand at the lowest price by not be able to offer all of them cheaper than its competitors.  That’s why the comparison is so valuable.

Paying more than you need to would not be a good idea when you are purchasing something like your contacts.  The costs can really add up over time.