How can you tell cycling glasses apart from sunglasses? What exactly is the difference between them? Cycling glasses are essential for cyclists, and this article will teach you how to choose the right pair of cycling and sunglasses for yourself.
Cycling glasses and sunglasses are not the same—never use sunglasses while cycling. Cycling glasses offer an anti-wind function that sunglasses lack, and don’t underestimate this feature—it significantly reduces your risk of getting conjunctivitis. So, good cycling glasses will keep your eyes completely unaffected by wind even when riding at high speed. Also, cycling glasses must not use glass lenses because they greatly increase the chance of injury in case of a fall, whereas resin lenses protect your eyes from scratches. Below, we’ll use some information on sunglasses to introduce how to choose cycling glasses.
The types of sunglass lenses can be roughly divided into five categories: anti-reflective coated lenses, colored lenses, tinted lenses, polarized lenses, and photochromic lenses.
Anti-Reflective Coated Lenses: These lenses have a thin layer of magnesium fluoride applied to the surface to prevent strong light reflections, helping you see things more clearly without being disturbed by glare. To test if your glasses truly have anti-reflective coated lenses, aim them at a light source—if you see purple or green reflections, it means the lens does indeed have an anti-reflective protective coating.
Tinted Lenses: These lenses produce the same visual effect as colored lenses but are made differently—the color is applied to the surface of the lens. The most well-known type is “gradient tinted lenses,” where the color is darkest at the top and gradually fades downward. Generally, prescription sunglasses often use the tinting method for their lenses.
Polarized Lenses: To filter out the intense, horizontally oriented light reflected off surfaces like water, roads, or snow, a special vertical coating is added to the lens—this is called a polarized lens. They are best suited for outdoor activities (such as marine sports, skiing, or fishing).
Colored Lenses: Also known as “tinted lenses,” these are created during the lens manufacturing process by adding certain chemicals to give the lens color, which helps absorb specific wavelengths of light. This is the most commonly used type of lens in sunglasses.
Photochromic Lenses: Also referred to as “light-sensitive lenses.” Because silver halide chemicals are added to the lenses, they turn from clear to colored when exposed to strong light, providing protection. Therefore, they are suitable for both indoor and outdoor use.
The Functions and Effects of Different Colored Sunglass Lenses:
Beyond material differences, here’s an introduction to the functions and effects of various colored sunglass lenses.
Brown Lenses: Filter out a large amount of blue light, improving visual contrast and clarity. They perform well in heavily polluted or foggy conditions. Typically, they can block reflections from smooth, shiny surfaces, allowing wearers to still see fine details, making them ideal for drivers.
Gray Lenses: Gray lenses evenly absorb all color spectrums, so while they make the view darker, there is no significant color distortion, maintaining a true and natural feel. They belong to the neutral color family.
Dark Gray Lenses: Similar to gray lenses and also considered neutral, but darker in color with a higher absorption rate of visible light.
Yellow Lenses: Strictly speaking, these lenses aren’t considered sunglasses because they barely reduce visible light. However, in foggy or dusk conditions, yellow lenses can enhance contrast and provide a clearer image, hence also called night-driving glasses. Some young people wear yellow "sunglasses" purely for decoration.
Silver Lenses: The lens surface uses a high-density mirrored coating. Such lenses absorb and reflect more visible light, making them suitable for outdoor sports enthusiasts.
Green Lenses: While absorbing light, they maximize the amount of green light that reaches the eyes, creating a cool and comfortable feeling. They are suitable for those whose eyes get tired easily.
Light Blue, Light Pink, and Other Lenses: These are more decorative than functional.
Blue Lenses: Suitable for beach outings—the blue tint effectively filters out the light blue reflections from the sea and sky. Avoid using blue lenses while driving, as they can make it difficult to distinguish traffic signal colors.
Dark Green Lenses: Absorb heat and provide a cooling sensation, but with lower light transmission and clarity. Suitable for sunbathing but not recommended for driving.
Clear Lenses: Clear lenses actually have a slight pale yellow tint, but because it's light, they’re called clear lenses. They can be used as windproof or rainproof glasses.
The primary function of glasses for us is to block ultraviolet rays, which significantly increase the risk of cataracts. UV protection strength is unrelated to the color of the lens but depends on the lens material and coatings. All the above colors should have UV380 or higher protection; otherwise, no matter how dark the lens, it should be replaced.
Types of Lens Coatings:
Standard Coating: This is the mercury-like coating applied to sunglass lenses—some are light, some are dark, depending on how much sun protection you need. For very sunny days, opt for a deeper coating, similar to the tinted glass used in car windows.
SFM Coating: Comes in standard mercury, rainbow, blue, and gold mercury finishes. Highly scratch-resistant, with six layers of new materials, it offers clearer and glossier results than regular plating.
AR Coating: Used for prescription lenses or high-quality eyewear, it consists of multiple ultra-thin layers of inorganic compounds, utilizing advanced machinery to simulate vacuum plating. Sunglasses often have this coating applied to the back of the lens. It improves light transmittance, provides a clear and comfortable visual experience, reduces reflection, enhances night vision, reduces eye fatigue, and minimizes computer radiation.
Lens Appearance: Maintains the original color, especially for light and gradient tints, ensuring clear visibility and true-to-life colors. The lenses have a shine, look pleasant, and unlike standard mercury coatings, they are not dull. Especially with quality mercury coatings, the original light transmittance remains unchanged or changes only slightly by 1–2%, reducing reflection and increasing comfort. Lower-quality mercury coatings may significantly reduce light transmittance, cause glare, and allow the wearer to see their own eyes reflected in the lens.
Revo mercury: This refers to colored mercury coatings. They are commonly used in sports eyewear. Available in blue Revo, black-red Revo, green Revo, and orange Revo. It is made by plating 8–12 extremely thin layers of mercury coating, which is why it's relatively expensive. It performs exceptionally well in blocking solar radiation, comes in a variety of colors that can match the frame, and has water-repellent properties. The plating process includes a water-repelling agent, making the lens surface very smooth. Its water resistance ensures that water droplets quickly bead up and roll off rather than sitting on the lens.
In summary:
Blue is suitable for foggy days or when visibility is low.
The five most commonly used colors for cycling glasses are likely black, blue, yellow, clear, and mirrored. Black is generally used for strong sunlight during midday.
Clear lenses are very important — they’re not just for looks, but mainly serve as windproof and waterproof eye protection.
Yellow lenses improve clarity by increasing image contrast, especially in the evening.
Mirrored lenses are needed in snowy or high-altitude areas with intense light and strong UV rays. Those planning to go to high altitudes should definitely have a pair.