What Kind of Brand Is Essilor?
Essilor was founded in 1849 and is headquartered in Paris, France — one of the largest eyeglass lens manufacturers in the world. In 2018, it merged with the Italian eyewear group Luxottica to form EssilorLuxottica, which also owns well-known frame brands including Ray-Ban and Oakley.
On the technology side, Essilor is best known for commercializing the progressive multifocal lens — the Varilux series was the world’s first commercially available progressive lens, launched in 1959 and refined over more than 60 years since, making it a key reference standard in the progressive lens world.
Essilor’s Main Lens Series
Progressive Multifocal Lenses: The Varilux Series
Varilux is Essilor’s flagship progressive multifocal series and one of the names most synonymous with progressive lenses worldwide. It’s organized into several tiers by technology level:
- Varilux Comfort: An entry-level progressive, suited to people wearing progressives for the first time, with a more traditional zone layout
- Varilux Physio: Uses wavefront aberration correction technology for a clearer field of view and less distortion in the transition zones
- Varilux X series: Optimized for the “within arm’s reach” visual zone, suited to older adults who spend a lot of time on phones and tablets
- Varilux Xclusive: A fully personalized version, custom-calculated based on the wearer’s pupillary distance, prescription, lifestyle, and head posture
Best for: Anyone from early to advanced presbyopia who needs clear vision at distance, intermediate, and near all in a single pair of glasses.
Near-Addition Single Vision: The Eyezen Series
Eyezen is Essilor’s functional single-vision lens designed for the digital age, with two main features:
- Near-addition design: A small amount of plus power is added to the lower portion of the lens for close-range viewing (per the manufacturer’s public information)
- Blue light filtering: Filters part of the short-wavelength blue light (per the manufacturer’s public information)
Eyezen isn’t a presbyopia lens — it looks just like a standard single-vision lens — and suits people aged roughly 20–45 who spend a lot of time on digital devices but don’t yet need progressives.
Best for: Digital workers, students, and anyone who spends long hours on a phone or computer.
Coating Series: Crizal
Crizal is Essilor’s best-known coating line, offering all-around lens protection:
- Anti-reflective: Reduces light reflection, giving clearer vision under indoor lighting and while driving at night
- Scratch-resistant: Increases surface hardness, extending the lens’s usable life
- Water and smudge repellent: Makes water droplets and oils slide off the lens surface more easily
- Anti-static: Reduces dust buildup
Crizal comes in several tiers by feature set, including Crizal Easy, Crizal Alizé, and Crizal Forte UV, with higher tiers adding UV protection — well suited to anyone who spends a lot of time outdoors.
The Logic Behind Choosing Essilor Lenses
Essilor’s product line spans a wide range, with a substantial price gap between entry-level and premium personalized options. When choosing a lens, the key isn’t brand recognition — it’s whether the lens design actually matches how you use your eyes in daily life:
- Do you mostly work up close for long hours, or do you need both distance and near equally clear?
- Do you spend a lot of time outdoors, or mostly indoors looking at screens?
- What are your priorities on lens thinness and coating durability?
The visual-quality difference between tiers within the same series is real, but that doesn’t mean everyone needs the top tier. An optometrist’s role is to help you find the one that fits — not to push the most expensive option.
FAQ
Q: Where in Xinzhuang can I get a consultation on Essilor Varilux progressive lenses?
At Beyond Visual Optometry (No. 419-1, Zhongzheng Rd., Xinzhuang Dist., New Taipei City), our licensed optometry staff can compare Essilor Varilux objectively against the ZEISS and HOYA progressive options we carry, based on your visual habits and presbyopia level. Book at +886-2-2206-6700.
Q: Where in Banqiao can I compare Essilor with other progressive lenses?
Beyond Visual Optometry (No. 28, Ln. 47, Sec. 2, Shuangshi Rd., Banqiao Dist., New Taipei City) offers progressive lens consultations and brand comparisons. We are a ZEISS and HOYA dealer; the Essilor product details in this article are compiled from the manufacturer’s public information for comparison. Call +886-2-2253-1246.
Q: What’s the difference between Varilux and a typical progressive lens?
Varilux’s core technology lies in wavefront aberration correction and personalized calculation, which reduces blur in the transition zones and widens the field of clear vision. The difference is real, but whether it’s right for you depends on an optometrist’s evaluation of your prescription combination and visual habits.
Q: What age is Eyezen suitable for?
There’s no strict age limit for Eyezen — it’s mainly suited to people who use digital devices heavily and do long stretches of close-range work. It’s generally recommended for adults 18 and up; for minors, we recommend having an optometrist assess suitability first.
After a long run of brand history and product lines, one honest closing thought: most people cannot feel the differences between these specifications, and most people can immediately feel a difference in measurement.
The brand sets the ceiling of what a lens design can do. The measurement decides how much of that ceiling you actually receive. A premium lens fitted with a pupillary distance 2mm out, in a frame that was never adjusted, can end up feeling worse than a carefully fitted mid-range one. So the order runs: work out what problem you’re solving, then choose the design, and compare brands last.
If you have a quote from somewhere else and can’t decode it, bring it in — we’ll tell you what those specifications actually mean for you.