Jade, Sapphire, or Ruby

[Stormboy55]

As I sit here and attempt to research which lens to get, I get more confused each minute. I am looking at prism jade polarized iridium, prizm sapphire polarized iridium, and prism ruby polarized(no iridium) as Oakley does not offer it under the SI program. MY frame will probably the Drop Point. I am in the sunshine state, Florida. I also like to vacation on cruise ship about twice a year. I also would like to have a lens that is true to color. Og heck, what to choose. Any thoughts would be very much appreciated. Jerry

 

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["TRUMP"]

Hi welcome also from sunshine state

 

["TRUMP"]

Ruby would be my choice of the 3.

 

[Stormboy55]

Hi welcome also from sunshine state

Trump...great name🇺🇸 Daytona here. How’s that I-4 project coming along?

 

[-Dustin]

My preference is Sapphire. It’s my favorite lens. Probably because of the base color. Really not a fan of Ruby when the sun is out. Maybe it’s a rods and cones issue...but I’d take Sapphire for most situations over Jade.

 

[Mike.vanderkoon]

Welcome to the forum.

If you don’t have any frames with ruby, go with ruby. —it’s a classic. My second is sapphire. I’m loving sapphire right now. It’s gorgeous.

 

[VirusSixZero]

First, any of Oakley's lenses with a (semi)-precious stone in its name features an Iridium reflective coating. Only a few lenses do not have an Iridium coating. Oakley's website is riddled with little mistakes like the wrong light transmission %, the wrong lens base colour, etc. They cannot even decide how they want to spell the word "Grey". Your confusion is warranted.

Ruby, Sapphire, Jade, are all Iridium coatings. Violet, Black, Chrome, and 24K are others that don't follow the pattern. Why they didn't use Amethyst, Obsidian (Slate was used in the past), and Citrine is a mystery.

Second, if having a neutral lens that does not alter colour perception whatsoever is important, Ruby is the closest, from your list. The strictly neutral lenses Oakley offers are: Black Iridium, Chrome Iridium, and Grey or Dark Grey. Previous offerings are just that, but I believe those are all the current ones. Ruby, Sapphire, and Violet are listed as neutral lenses, but I disagree, they tinker subtly with colours. The most gentle on colour perception are Ruby and Jade. Sunglass lenses are subjective, but I find Ruby to be a gentle and pleasant orange, and Jade is a subtle rose. Sapphire is a bit orangey and Violet is a subtle yellowy-green tinge.

When looking at the lens information on Oakley's site, you want to look for anything with "neutral" as the contrast. Anything that increases contrast tunes colour perception. ALL Prizm lenses tune contrast and colour perception to various degrees.

If you want a lens for very bright conditions, the darkest lenses Oakley makes are Black Iridium, and Dark Grey. Jade and Ruby are similar, and I find are quite versatile, but perform best in bright to medium light, but not very bright. Jade tinkers with colour perception, but I find it quite subtle. Sapphire is a little more noticeable when you first put it on, but you adjust quickly.

If you can, I highly recommend going to a store and trying on the non-polarized versions of your lens candidates. Everyone's experience is subjective when it comes to whether they like what a lens does to colour, and how long it takes their eyes to adapt if it tinkers with perception.

 

[Atticus]

Any Prizm lense adds at least a tiny contrast. (At least all that I’ve worn and compared) Compare Prizm black to BI and you can see it...it’s very, very subtle, but there.

I like a rose base lense, so sapphire is my particular choice from above. If it’s regular Jade, it will be more neutral, almost like BI...Jade Prizm is rose based, as well, IIRC. (And very cool)

 

[Mike.vanderkoon]

Violet is definitely not neutral.

 

[VirusSixZero]

Violet is definitely not neutral.

Agreed. Oakley's website is full of all kinds of odd errors. I find Violet quite strong, and not very comfortable unless conditions are bright or very bright. In flat or medium light, Violet seems to behave like you're wearing a lens that's too dark, and detail is starting to get lost. It's strange considering the lens is kind of a yellowy-green to the user, and yellow is typically a contrast enhancer in low light, and awful for bright light.

Jade Iridium seems to have undergone a change in past years. A video online comparing lenses had Jade Iridium as neutral, and very close to Black Iridium. I have a pair of Jade Iridium Jupiter Squared that predate any Prizm lenses, and they are quite obviously a rose base, not grey. It's probably my favourite lens.