Smith Theory Sunglasses

Initial Report

 

Biography

Name:  Ashlee Gunter         
Age: 28
Gender: Female
Height: 5’ 1” (1.55 m)
Weight: 110 lb (50 kg)
Email address: Ashlee(dot)gunter(at)gmail(dot)com
City, State: Baton Rouge (Denham Springs), LA
Date: 03/06/2005
 
I have been backpacking and hiking most of my life. While I was growing up, my father was a Scoutmaster. He would load my sister and me up with packs, just like the guys, and take us along with him on their trips. As I’ve grown, I’ve had the opportunity to hike and backpack in Florida, Utah and Idaho, and now presently Louisiana and Mississippi. I’ve hiked terrain from high desert, to swamp and most anything in between.  My backpacking partners include my husband, our 4 yr old son, and sometimes our dog, Brownie.  Since my husband and I share our son’s load, I am always looking for ways to cut bulk and weight from my pack without sacrificing comfort.  I am not an ultralight extremist and will carry a little extra if it makes my trip more pleasant. Because of a busy life, my trips are limited mostly to day or weekend trips.

Product Information

Manufacturer:	Smith
Website:	www.smithoptics.com
Model Year:	2005
MSRP:	$109.00

Initial Inspection

Listed Features

• Small/Medium Fit
• Patented Interchangeable Lens technology
• Polarized include 4 sets of lenses
• 9 base TLT™ Carbonic™ lenses
• Grilamid™ TR90 Nylon Frame
• Hydrophilic Megol™ nose/temple pads
• 100% UVA/B/C Protection
• Distortion-Free Polarized Lens Model

When I read through this list of features, my first thought was, ‘huh?’ I understood Small/Medium fit, along with a few other features, but the rest was Greek to me.  Luckily, Smith’s website explains all of this to us in English.  The first of these is the 9 base TLT™ Carbonic™ lenses.  I never found out exactly what 9 base was.  There is a section on the website that discusses it, but it does not do a great job of explaining 9 base.  TLT stands for Tapered Lens Technology.  This affects the way the light is distributed through the lens and helps prevent distortion.  Next is the Carbonic™ lens.  This is supposed to be one of the strongest materials available to makes lenses out of.  The Grilamid™ TR90 Nylon frame is a very comfortable, flexible frame.  The hydrophilic Megol™ nose/temple pads are supposed to repel moisture to keep the sunglasses from slipping.  It also surpasses ANSI Z80.3 standards, which are standards set forth by the American National Statndards Institute. According to www.ansi.org, these standards regulate certain safety requirements including, protection from UV rays, tolerances from refractive power, flammability resistance, and color discrimmination. I believe that covers all of the difficult features.  More information on the Smith Theory’s specific features can be found on their website.

When the Smith Theory sunglasses arrived, I first noticed how many lenses came in the package.  I received the Tortoise Polar Package which included the following lenses: Polarized Sienna (dark) Brown, RC36 (light brown), Yellow, and Clear. Additionally, Smith was nice enough to include two Max (slightly larger) lenses in Sienna Brown and Yellow.  The Max lenses came in small black bags, separate from the lenses typical to the package.  Also included were a handful of Smith stickers.  My husband was more than happy to immediately swipe one and put it on his Nalgene.  Although my Nalgene did not gain a Smith sticker, it was nice to get something extra.  I was disappointed to notice that they did not come with a cleaning cloth.  Although this sounds like a minor detail, I would have liked to have one.  I have already found myself cleaning them on my shirt and believe I would mostly avoid that method of cleaning if I had the cloth.

Initial Use

As soon as I received the sunglasses, I tried them on. Since I have a small face, finding sunglasses that fit me well is a challenge at times.  I instantly noticed how light and comfortable they were. They also looked good. 

The Smith Theory sunglasses came with the Polarized Sienna Brown lenses in them.  Louisiana has an abundance of water and much of the Interstate system is actually bridges.  Because of this, I prefer to drive with Polarized lenses.  Therefore, I left the lenses that came with the glasses in them.  The first couple of days were cloudy, so the dark brown lenses were too dark.  This may have been a good opportunity to try the yellow’s, but I had left them at home each day.  After that, I had a couple of days of bright sunshine and got to try out the sunglasses.  I noticed right away that they deflected the sun really well.  I was also very pleased with the lack of distortion in them. 

Testing Strategy

During the six month test period, I plan to wear the Smith Theory sunglasses whenever the opportunity presents itself.  I will wear them on backpacking and camping trips throughout the summer, as well as, day hikes.  Additionally, I will wear them as a casual, everyday pair of sunglasses when driving, spending time outdoors, swimming, and the like.

There are many things I will be looking for.  I already know I like the fit and style of the sunglasses, and that they are comfortable.  Will this continue to be the case?  When I am active and sweating, will they still be comfortable and not slip around on my face?  Will they bother me behind my ears and around my nose and cause headaches?

I am curious about the different types of lenses.  I would like to see if I really have a use for all of them, and which lenses I like the most for my typical use.  I will swap out these lenses on a regular basis and get a good feel for the different options.

I also will be testing for the durability of these sunglasses.  I will not abuse them, but it is likely that they will be used in rough conditions at times.  Will the Smith Theory sunglasses hold up to bumps, drops, and scrapes?  Will they get scratched up from being in my pack? Will they warp from the heat if they are left in my truck?

Things I Like

• Comfortable/ Fit well
• No distortion
• Deflects the sun well

Things I don’t like

• No cleaning cloth