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Reviews > Eye Protection and Binoculars > Sun Glasses > Live Eyewear Cocoons Sunglasses > Test Report by Jennifer Koles

Cocoons OveRx Sunglasses

Test Series by Jennifer Koles

June 1, 2011

Skip to my Initial Report- January 16, 2011
Skip to my Field Report- April 5, 2011
Skip to my Long Term Report- June 1, 2011

Personal Information

Name:  Jennifer Koles
Age:  36
Gender:  Female
Height:  5 ft 5 in (1.65 m)
Weight: 140 lb (64 kg)
Email address: jennksnowy at yahoo dot com
City, State, and Country: Orange County, California, United States


Backpacking Background

After getting into the outdoors scene camping while 4-wheeling and day-hiking, I switched to backpacking in the early 2000's. I have backpacked extensively in Utah, Wyoming and Idaho along with California, Pennsylvania and Nevada. I have slowly been cutting my base weight to be able to go longer in duration and distance. I have done so mainly by using better gear and dumping heavy luxuries. I backpack year round in all weather, and usually take a free standing tent and a gas stove on all my trips. I love trying out new gear.

The author

The author in the Narrows at Zion National Park, Utah.


Initial Report

January 16, 2011

Product Information

Manufacturer: Live Eyewear, Inc.
Year of Manufacture: 2010
Model Tested: Mini Slim C417A
Manufacturer Website: www.liveeyewear.com


Colors Available: Frame: Black, Sand, Tort, Slate, Burgundy, and Ivy; Lens: Gray, Amber, Copper, Yellow, and Blue Mirror (non-polarized)

Cocoons Sunglasses

Sizes Available: Stream Line (S), Mini Slim (MS), Slim Line (M), Wide Line (ML), Pilot (L), and Aviator (XL)

Color Tested: Frame: Tort; Lens: Amber
Size Tested: Mini Slim (MS)

Manufacturer Stated Weight: None listed on website
Measured Weight: 1 oz (28 g)

Fit: Fits over prescription frames measuring less than:
125 mm in width by 35 mm in height (4 15/16 inches in width by 1 3/8 inches in height)

Warranty: Limited lifetime
MSRP: $49.95 USD


Product Description

The Cocoons OveRx Sunglasses are designed to be worn over prescription eyewear. The Cocoons are not a clip-on type of lens; they are a full sunglass design.

Features:

  • 360 degrees of eye protection from the sun (lenses on the side of the temples of the frame)
  • Frame is made of strong ballistic nylon with a soft finish
  • Flex2Fit temples (flexible ear pieces with a wire core that enables them to be manually bent for a better fit)
  • Polaré Polarized Lenses (available in the gray, amber, copper, or yellow lenses)-the polarization rearranges light and allows one to see through the harsh glare and reflection. The lenses are made to be durable, lightweight, and scratch resistant. They exceed optical properties of Class 1 European Standard.
  • Accessories included: zippered neoprene case (with a belt clip and hang clip), lens cloth, and instructions

Initial Impressions

While hiking, backpacking, and enjoying the outdoors; I always wear sunglasses (unless I forget them, which is rare). For a few years I was wearing clip-on sunglasses over my prescription glasses. Then I purchased an expensive pair of prescription polarized sunglasses. Now I am going to try the Cocoons OveRx Sunglasses over two of my prescription glasses.

I viewed the sizing chart on the Internet and I was torn between two sizes. I have two pairs of prescription glasses that I will be wearing with these sunglasses. Both are wide frames with half framed lenses measuring 125 mm (4.92 in) in width. The lenses are small; measuring 25 to 30 mm (0.98 to 1.18 in) in height. Based on the measurements of my glasses the Mini Slim will work best for me. Live Eyewear assisted me in making this decision by sending me a few different styles to see which one would work the best. My widest glasses that measure 133 mm (5.25 in) wide are just a hair too wide for the Mini Slim glasses. That will be OK because I have two other pairs of glasses I can wear with them.

The Cocoons Sunglasses come in many frame color to choose from. But, I found it most important to select the lens color that would be best suited for the amount of light transmission that I wanted. So, I selected the amber lens. This lens has the lowest light transmission of all the Cocoons lenses at 14%. All the Cocoons lenses have 100% UVA/UVB protection. The amber lens is designed to increase contrast by providing improved depth perception in varying light conditions.

The adjustable temples were easily bent with not much effort to fit the Cocoons Sunglasses. I have them adjusted so they are not too snug, but also so they do not slide forward on my nose or off my face. The initial fit feels comfortable without any sore spots.

I wore them for a brief period outside prior to writing this report and I found that they filtered the sunlight and the glare so that I was not squinting. Thus far they are working well.


Field Report

April 5, 2011

Testing Locations

At the Wave

Coyote Buttes North, Arizona/Utah: The Cocoons were used here on a day hike for about 10 mi (16 km). The temperatures were in the 50's F (11 C). The elevation at the Wave was 5,200 ft (1,585 m).

Mt. San Jacinto State Park, California: The Cocoons were worn here for two days snowshoeing to an elevation around 9,000 ft (2,750 m). The temperatures ranged from the 30's F to the mid 40's F (-1 C to 4 C). There was hard pack and some powder snow on the trail.

Southern California: The Cocoons were worn on early evening hikes in El Moro, Limestone Canyon, Orchard Hills, and on the beach path. There was no precipitation on these hikes/outings. The temperatures were in the mid 40's F (4 C) to the low 60's F (16 C).

In addition to the above locations the Cocoons were worn frequently while driving and getting from point to point while I was wearing my prescription glasses. There were a few occasions that I was wearing my contacts and I forgot my regular sunglasses; I had the Cocoons in my car and they came in handy.


Performance in the Field

Cocoons at The Wave

Since January I have been wearing the Cocoons Mini Slim Sunglasses on almost a daily basis over my prescription glasses. I have also worn them while wearing contacts because I forgot my regular sunglasses. The Cocoons are very lightweight.

At first I found the Mini Slims slightly awkward while wearing them over my prescription glasses; this was because of how wide the Cocoons glasses are. I would actually like to see the Cocoons available in more sizing options, especially for smaller prescription lenses. I needed the Mini Slim model of the Cocoons due to the width of my prescription frames; my prescription lenses are so small and the Cocoons look large over my prescription glasses.

So far my initial fit of the Cocoons is good. There has not been any irritation on my ears and the sunglasses have not been sliding down off my nose. They were easy to initially fit. Just a little bit of bending is all it takes, no heating them up or taking them to an eye care professional.

The amber lenses are doing a good job of blocking the light for my sensitive eyes. I have found that they do not block as much light as some of my other sunglasses, but I have not found this to be an issue. The lenses are blocking the bright harsh sunlight, reflection off pavement and water, and adding a nice tint to the world that I am viewing. The amber lenses are not too dark that they can not be worn in shaded areas, at dusk, or indoors; I was happy that I could still see while hiking and driving. I noticed that there is no distortion with these lenses; I have found sometimes with inexpensive polarized lenses there is some distortion.

I like the fact that there is eye protection in the temple area of the Cocoons, but I am having an issue with the temple portion of the frame obstructing my vision. I am noticing this especially when I am driving as I have to use my peripheral vision more than when I am hiking or walking. This issue may be due to the face that the Cocoons are large on my face or just the design. I notice that the lower corners of my visual field have the greatest visual obstruction. Also when I am looking straight forward my peripheral vision is also bothered by this temple area. I am noticing where the frame and the temple eye protection meet and at times it is annoying.


Long Term Report

June 1, 2011

Testing Locations

Wasatch Mountains and St. George area, Utah: The Cocoons were worn here on days hikes and while camping. It was mostly sunny and the temperatures ranged from the low 70's F (21 C) to the mid 90's F (35 C).

Southern California: The Cocoons were worn on hikes in El Moro and Orchard Hills. It was mostly sunny on these hikes/outings, but there were days that it was misty and foggy. The temperatures were the low 60's F (16 C) to the low 80's F (27 C).

The Mini Slims were also worn while driving and on my beach walks after work in Southern California.


Performance in the Field

The Cocoons Mini Slim Sunglasses have been worn in the field the past two months with two different pairs of eyeglasses. There were times that I wore them with my contacts when I forgot my regular sunglasses. This worked to protect my eyes, but not the most ideal situation since the Mini Slim Sunglasses are so large on my face.  

These sunglasses are lightweight, durable, and do not cause any irritation. They have been dropped on the ground and luckily they did not become scratched. The nylon frame composition is strong and does not become bent after wearing hats or due to switching between different eyeglasses.  The Mini Slims have been staying in place over my glasses and are not sliding off my nose or ears. There is also no irritation where they rest on my nose or ears.

I am still finding the Mini Slims to be wide and quite large. It surprises me how large they are since they are on the smaller end of the sizing scale. Both of my eyeglasses have small frames and lenses and the Mini Slim was the best fit. I would like to see more options with the Cocoons Sunglasses to better fit smaller lenses.  

I am still finding the temple portion of the frame obstructing my vision. This is a nuisance especially while driving when I have to use my peripheral vision.

The amber lenses are still providing good eye protection and glare reduction, but they allow more light transmission than I prefer.  I generally like darker lenses due to the sensitivity of my eyes. I have worn them in cloudy conditions and wooded areas and they still allow enough light transmission that I can see the trail.


Summary

I like the concept of the Cocoons Sunglasses. They offer good eye protection with a lightweight and durable frame. The lenses of the Mini Slims are rather large for the size of my eyeglasses, but in Hollywood large glasses are in.


Things That Rock:

  • Easy to fit
  • Comfortable on my ears and nose
  • Sizing chart is accurate
  • Good light filtration
  • No glare

Things That Are So-So:

  • Look large on my face
  • Field of view obstruction

Remarks

This concludes my long term reporting of the Cocoons OveRx Sunglasses. Thank you Live Eyewear and BackpackGearTest.org for providing me with the opportunity to test the Cocoons OveRx Sunglasses.

 



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Reviews > Eye Protection and Binoculars > Sun Glasses > Live Eyewear Cocoons Sunglasses > Test Report by Jennifer Koles



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