Decent glasses, but too costly for being made in Taiwan

bashamrj

Member since  Mar 18, 2009

Posted on July 8, 2011

I am the first to admit I have a problem when it comes to sunglasses. I can't seem to have enough. After owning various polarized shades from Oakley, Smith Action Optics, Kaenon and Maui Jim, I thought it was time to try out Costa's. I was interested in their new 580P lens since glass lenses still scare me a bit. I chose the tortoise frame with copper lens. Overall I liked the glasses. The copper lens did amp up the color, especially greens and reds, compared my neutral gray lenses. I like the fit and style of the glasses too. They hugged my head pretty well and definitely weren't falling off with the comolded frames. I didn't really care for the integrated hinge. It just seems cheap to me. I do think overall they are very rugged and could handle abuse. My main hangup, and the reason I ended up returning these, was I couldn't pay $170 for a pair of sunglasses were made in Taiwan. In the premium pricing category, I really think Kaenon, Smith and Maui are putting out better quality products manufactured in countries that are known for better quality. And props to Oakley for making their sunglasses in the USA. Had the Fantails been made in the US, I would have kept them and probably picked up a model with the 580 glass lens as well.