ZEISS SmartLife: New Eyeglass Lens Portfolio Fit for a Connected and On-The-Move Lifestyle

Aalen, Germany | 11 December 2019 | ZEISS Vision Care

These days, we spend a lot of time on-the-move: we take our smartphones along with us, quickly and frequently shifting our focus between the screen and our surroundings – in short, our connected and dynamic lifestyle is changing our visual habits. ZEISS has developed a completely new eyeglass lens portfolio for all ages that takes new visual challenges into account in its design. In combination with the wearer’s age, visual needs and the latest optical technologies, ZEISS SmartLife Lenses are poised to deliver exceptional visual comfort in our connected, dynamic world – every day and across all age groups.

ZEISS has enhanced its tried-and-true eyeglass lens designs and added some technological innovations to boot: in October 2019, ZEISS SmartLife will be launching a complete premium portfolio for consumers no matter their age. The ZEISS SmartLife lens design factors in our modern connected and on-the-move lifestyle, dynamic visual behavior, individual visual needs, and age. The same principles apply to customized precision lenses from ZEISS: the comprehensive analysis and measurement of the wearer’s personal needs at the ECP’s is the basis for calculating and manufacturing custom eyeglass lenses.

While listening to a podcast, we shoot a glance at our smartwatch, send a message to our family, adjust the heating at home via our smartphones and, somewhere in-between all of that, look at the street, a store window, or the person we’re talking to. This is all pretty standard – after all, people of all ages are now leading a digital, always connected lifestyle. The fastest-growing group of smartphone users is the over-55s.¹ 70 percent of people now use multiple devices.² The Internet of Things (IoT) is gaining ground: no matter where people are, it connects them with their coffee machines, lawn mowers, pet cams and many other appliances besides.³ At the same time, our link to the physical world and our natural environment remains intact. For this reason, modern-day eyeglass lenses need to be compatible with our on-the-move lifestyle, which constantly switches between the on- and offline worlds. ZEISS SmartLife is the response to just that.

We are constantly shifting our focus between analogue and digital stimuli. Our modern lifestyle demands that several things happen at once, which means we’re almost always on-the-move. How many of us have crossed the street, smartphone in hand? Even when deep in conversation, we like to keep an eye on our portal to the digital realm. So our eyes don’t just shift between the two worlds, they actually flit between different directions and distances all the time. This doesn’t just demand a lot more cognition – in fact, our eyes have to do some heavy lifting. It’s important for consumers to receive visual support in the form of fitting eyeglass lenses.

A study⁴ by the ZEISS Vision Science Lab in Tübingen, Germany, has shown that using a smartphone has caused us to look down much more than we used to – without moving our heads downwards. That means we look through the lower part of the lens much more than we used to (compared to situations without a smartphone). So we’re now using a larger area of the lens than before. This dynamic new visual tendency, coupled with how our eyes constantly switch between different distances, have been factored into the design of the new ZEISS SmartLife Lenses. ZEISS SmartLife thus ensures all day visual comfort. Furthermore, a ZEISS consumer study has shown that consumers can quickly and easily adapt to the new ZEISS SmartLife eyeglass lens design.⁵

While there are some similarities in the lifestyles and visual behavior of people of different ages, we know that some key parameters will change over the course of our lives. This includes how our pupils get smaller and smaller as we get older.⁶ As a result, less light reaches the retina. Also the eye’s lens begins to lose its elasticity. We find it harder to focus on near objects (to accommodate). The challenges our eyes face every day constantly change as we get older, and range from basic needs like clear vision and help seeing near objects through to correcting presbyopia. As ZEISS strives to deliver optimum vision for all, it is ensured that these aspects have been factored into every single pair of ZEISS SmartLife eyeglass lenses.

Alongside individual correction, three factors come together to create custom lenses: the wearer’s age, lifestyle and visual behavior. Consumers aren’t interested in whether their lenses will correct their short- or long-sightedness, presbyopia or visual challenges in middle age. What they're looking for are lenses that are adapted to their lifestyle, age group, the demands of the modern world, and their personal needs – which is where ZEISS SmartLife comes in.

Customized ZEISS SmartLife Lenses can be adjusted as needed, such as when their prescription changes. Since wearers often stick with a particular design over many years, it must be able to keep pace with their changing needs and the physiological changes that their eyes undergo. This makes switching from single vision to digital lenses both easy and convenient. With ZEISS SmartLife even the transition to lenses for correcting presbyopia is possible without any lengthy adaptation time. That has also been shown in the ZEISS consumer study. Eight out of ten presbyopic consumers adapted to their new ZEISS SmartLife Lenses in just one day. They also attest to the smooth transition between the different viewing zones.⁷

Consumers aren’t interested in the categories that eyeglass lenses have traditionally been assigned to. What they really want is a pair of glasses that suits their style and their needs. At the end of the day, eye care professionals can only offer easy-to-follow consultations on easy-to-follow concepts. Only then will consumers be able to make an informed decision.

That’s why with ZEISS SmartLife a communication will be introduced that details the lenses’ easy-to-understand, verifiable benefits, and avoiding any complicated, expert jargon, as well as the conventional breadth of product and feature names. ZEISS SmartLife comprises more than 1,000 individual products, which will continue to be used for orders, price lists and product comparisons. When visiting an ECP, all consumers need to know is how ZEISS SmartLife Lenses can be customized for them: thanks to the tried-and-true ZEISS Vision Analysis, entering ages and determining their personal needs can now be done without assigning them to one of the former lens categories. Placing an order with an ECP via the ZEISS VISUSTORE is as easy as shopping online.

Some eye care professionals may miss traditional terms like “single vision lenses,” “digital lenses” and “progressive lenses” in their advertising – ZEISS SmartLife has made a conscious decision to avoid this. There are two reasons for this: first, for a long time technological progress in the design and manufacture of customized lenses using freeform technology has been blurring the lines between numerous eyeglass lens categories. Second, consumers see such terms as an additional obstacle when it comes to selecting eyeglass lenses. ZEISS SmartLife has made lens consultation, selection and use easier and more convenient than ever.

^{SmartLife and VISUSTORE are registered trademarks of Carl Zeiss Vision GmbH.}