Ray-Ban Lenses: Types and Levels of Darkness

If you still think that the most important decision when buying sunglasses is choosing the color, material, and shape, then we have some bad news: this is a big mistake.

In fact, the most important factors for protecting your eyes from the sun and its reflective surfaces are the degree of darkness and the type of lenses.

Levels: everyone out of the twilight!

All lenses are divided into five categories according to their protection from visible light rays:

• 0: transparent (80-100% light transmission). These include lenses with diopters for medical purposes or image glasses with "zero" lenses.


• 1: light (43-80% light transmission). This level is suitable if you wear glasses in cloudy weather or use them as part of your look.


• 2: medium (18-43% light transmission). These lenses are ideal for driving and are the most versatile.


• 3: strong (8-18% light transmission). These glasses are perfect for summer when the sun is merciless. Classic Ray-Ban lenses like G-15 (dark green) and B-15 (dark brown) transmit 15% of light.


• 4: maximum (3-8% light transmission). Lenses designed for protection in snowy mountainous areas. These glasses are specialized and not suitable for everyday use (for example, you can't see anything behind the wheel). Ray-Ban does not offer glasses with these lenses.


• 5: beyond normal (less than 3% light transmission). If you conquer glaciers or work as a welder, this is what you need. Ray-Ban does not offer glasses with these lenses.

Ray-Ban uses only the first, second, and third levels of darkness for sunglasses (pictured from left to right):



Special cases among Ray-Ban lenses:

• Lenses with Top Gradient Mirror and Double Gradient Mirror technology blocking up to 4% of light;


• RB-50 and RB-50 Ultra lenses, released in 1987 for the anniversary, transmitting up to 5% of light;


• G-31 lenses, designed for polar/arctic/desert/mountain travel, transmitting 8% of light.

Lens Type: mysterious letters

Ray-Ban offers the following lens types: N, P, and F. In the image below, they are placed from left to right, making it clear that it's quite difficult to distinguish lenses by type just by looking at them:



What do these mysterious letters mean?

N: this is the classic type, meaning the lens is made of glass or plastic with a standard UV filter.

P: this is a polarized lens, and Ray-Ban offers several of them:

• P: polarization cuts off light rays reflected from horizontal surfaces (glare from snow, ice, or wet asphalt) while allowing other non-glare light rays to pass through.

Read more about polarized lenses.


• P3 (plastic) / P3 Plus (glass): in addition to the above, there is a hydro-oleophobic coating (no traces of grease and water on the lens surface) + enhanced contrast in P3 Plus lenses (improved sharpness).
  
  Read more about Ray-Ban P3 and P3 Plus lenses.

F: this letter stands for a photochromic (adaptive) lens, created using Light Adaptive technology, a filter for red and orange rays that reduce image quality. Additionally, this lens can lighten or darken depending on lighting conditions (full transition takes 5-15 minutes).

More details on photochromic lenses can be found in a separate article.

This article should have convinced you that the level of darkness and lens type are the first and most important points when choosing sunglasses. And if you've already decided on them, the rest is easy: model, size, color, and much more…