EnChroma Glasses

With up to 300 million people worldwide affected by color blindness, EnChroma has created a pair of smart glasses that filter colors – making it possible for those with Color Vision Deficiency (CVD) to see red and green clearly for the first time. Considered to be the perfect combination of color vision science and optical technology, EnChroma lenses “enhance colors without compromising color accuracy.”

Color blindness, according to EnChroma’s website, affects 1 in 12 men and 1 in 200 women. CVD – also called Deuteranomaly – is a form of blindness that compromises one’s ability to decipher between various shades of red and green. According to a recent Forbes article, contributing writer Seth Porges and his brother Eric – both color blind – tried EnChroma’s outdoor sunglasses and indoor computer lenses. The end result: “The glasses seem to spread out the red, brown, green color range; moving them from a muddy mess to a number of distinct colors,” according to Porges.

Most commonly inherited genetically, color blindness is caused by an overlap in red and green photopigments. EnChroma’s groundbreaking lens technology combines both the latest research in color blindness and the apparent anomalies in photopigments.

“At the corticallevel, the neural machinery is intact and perfectly functioning in the color blind, so once the correct ratios entering the eye are reestablished, the neural mechanisms excite, and the correct color can be seen and perceived.”

Offering consumers stylish Wayfarer-looking frames designed for both outdoor and indoor use, EnChroma’s innovative glasses are designed for those with a lens prescription and for those who solely want to see vibrant red and green. “In the simplest explanation, EnChroma’s glasses work by reestablishing the correct balance between signals from the three photopigments in the eye of the color deficient”. Co-founder and V.P. of Product Donald McPherson, Ph.D. said in a recent interview with Forbes, “The eyewear does this by removing small slices of light from the visible spectra.”

Whether its indoor glasses designed to seamlessly look at red and green colors on a computer screen or the customizable sunglasses created for outdoor use, the initial reaction for colorblind wearers is that of astonishment. According to Seth Porges, who is colorblind himself, “objects look like more vibrant version of themselves. A brick wall that once appeared brown – appeared red.”

Priced at $349 for the non-prescription lenses, EnChroma’s glasses are considered to a luxury item for those interested in experiencing the true vibrant reds and greens that they have yet to experience.