Eye strain is a big issue for us. Even if you don't necessarily feel the pain and fatigue associated with eye strain, you are absolutely suffering the effects. We gotta protect our eyes when we game so we can play all the awesome games that come out when we're old and retired and have nothing to do but play games.
Gunnar has been around for a long time. You may have seen their blue light filtering gamer glasses in stores like Best Buy, with their signature yellow wrap-around frames. I met Gunnar at Twitchcon last month and learned a lot about how they've grown and the huge variety of frames they offer now. I tried out a pair of their signature customizable frames, called the Torpedo 360, for a week. Not only were the positive effects almost instantaneous, but I'm also super impressed with the design and functionality of these glasses.
Comfortable And Effective
The aptly named Torpedo 360s are Gunnar's most panoramic lens by far, providing complete wrap-around coverage of your vision including your periphery. They are great for looking at large or multiple screen and I find that it's much easier to adjust to the yellow tint when you can only see the yellow even at the edges of your vision.
The light weight frames sit close to your face to reduce exposure to ambient air current and prevent your eyes from drying out. The flexible arms are are almost impossible to feel and are designed not to interfere with your headphones or cause any pain from pressure.
I wore the Torpedo 360s while I worked and gamed all week and not only did I totally forget I was wearing them, including the yellow tint, but my eyes feel different. I think I didn't even realize how dry and irritated they get on a daily basis, but now that I think about it, I tend to rub them a lot as the hours pass by and I stare at my computer screen. I'm never doing long binges without eye protection on again, and wearing them has now become part of my work routine when I write and edit.
Finding The Perfect Fit
The other special feature that the Torpedo's include is customizable lenses and nose bridges. The nose bridge detaches and comes with three different sizes so you can make sure the glasses fit perfectly. I use the biggest one and it makes the glasses sit super close to my face and almost make a seal around my head. It kind of makes me feel like Cyclops or Geordi La Forge.
The lenses pop out too and can be swapped with the included sun lenses which i tried out when I ran several errands this week. It was kind of nice to keep wearing the same glasses rather than switch to sun glasses that feel different on my face. I started to really feel like these were my glasses because I was wearing them all the time.
All of this, the lenses, the frames, the nose bridges, as well as a protective bag, wipes, and a microfiber cloth all come together in this awesome hard shell carrying case. It makes them easy to pack up and take with you anywhere. I like to keep the case with the sun lenses in my glove box and just wear the frames out of the house and swap them when I get to the car.
Deceptively Tough
I really thought I was going to break these when I first started tinkering with them. The nose bridges have a bit of an hourglass shape to them and can be hard to get past the lenses when you want to remove them. The lenses pop right out as well, but it helps to add a little torque to the frames when you want to slot them back in. You really have to man handle the frames a little bit to swap parts out, and at first I was scared of breaking them.
I haven't broken them though, and I've swapped out the lenses and nose bridge half a dozen times, including letting other people try them on. I think the Torpedo 360s are really tough for how lightweight and flexible they are. They're still glasses so I wouldn't go stepping on them or anything, but I don't think you have to worry too much about damaging them.
You HAVE To Protect Your Eyes
Our parents didn't know how much our lives would revolve around staring at screens, so despite growing up with an earful of "wear a jacket" and "eat your vegetables," a lot of us weren't taught how important it is to protect our vision. Gunnar's got your back and they're constantly adding new product so that everyone can find the style and fit that fits them best. The Torpedo 360s are an excellent place to start: they protect your vision the best with full wraparound coverage and you can swap the nose bridge out for the perfect fit. They even make great sunglasses. You have to protect your eyes, don't make me tell your mom.
A pair of Gunnar Torpedo 360s were provided to TheGamer for this review. You can check out the Torpedo 360s and Gunnar's full line of gamer glasses on the Gunnar website.