Opticians... the good, the bad and the ugly

[Profpointy]

Middle age brings ear hair, nose hair, and inability to put on ones socks without sitting down first... and I think my eye sight is starting to go.

Seeing as opticians are just like any other retailer, some are bound to be better than others.

so where should i go for a reliable eye test?

Spec-savers
Donald & Aickison
A&E
My doctor

??

no idea to be honest. I'm a little dubius of Donald & Aikinson (or whatever they're called) as a good decade ago they got a friends eyes mixed up and built her specs the wrong way round, they worked better worn upside down than the right way up. Are there any you can recommend or avoid?

My other fear is they'll give me, a man with little sense of style some 'face furniture' which really doesn't suit me.. so any advice on that front would also be appreciated.

Thanks

Whilst it's fairly sensible to have an occasional eye test I suppose, if it's just middle aged reading glasses you're after (more likely an not) then there are plenty on fleabay. My last lot were £5.95 for 3 pairs - optically fine. Arguably it's worth paying a bit more - up to a fiver perhaps. Waterstones bookshop do some slightly overpriced ones at £7 or so, but handy in an emergency.

Whilst i'm perfectly serious about the above comment, it is worth getting the optician to check for glaucoma etc. I got actual test at boots, and it was fair enough, price and quality wise, but I was a bit miffed he wouldn't esplain the difference in the prescription from ordinary +1 dioptre reading glasses and the slightly more sophisticated prescription he'd written but merely ushered me to the glasses sales lady who said, and admittedly I paraphrase slightly, "here are some shitty glasses, but our designer glasses are over here". I made my excuses and left as they say.

 

[Richard A Thackeray]

I've looked everywhere for one of those charts

I'm suresomeone with access to a A1/A2 paper size printer could sort you one out???

 

[slowmotion]

Mrs A_T went to Specsavers and they messed up the glasses spec completely but did give her her money back without any quibble- she then went to Optical Express who were magnificent!

I went to Optical Express too and they did a very thorough eye test for £15. They knock that off if you buy a pair of their glasses. Some of the more upmarket opticians charge silly money for an eye test.

 

[MontyVeda]

but are all eye tests created equal? that is the question.