Acuvue Advance - Not Quite As Advanced As Promised
Written: Nov 10 '04 (Updated Dec 30 '07)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Comfortable, "123" & "321"
Cons: Poor fluid retention, More expensive than 2's
The Bottom Line: The Acuvue Advance are technically good lenses, but seem to be inferior compared to the cheaper Acuvue 2 lenses... At least in my opinion.
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| soupcraze's Full Review: Acuvue Advance with Hydraclear |
For a few years I've been wearing Johnson & Johnson Acuvue 2 soft contact lenses. One time when I was buying a new box of contact lenses from the optometrist, I decided to try a trial pair of Acuvue Advance lenses. They are made by Johnson & Johnson, the same manufacturer of the slightly cheaper Acuvue 2 lenses. After a little over a month of wear, here's what I found with the Acuvue Advance contact lenses.
-Price-
*The Acuvue Advance costed $25 per box for six lenses. The Acuvue 2 lenses were $22 per box for six lenses. The prices all depend on where you buy them, whether it's from the internet, store, or your eye doctor. But I think that the consensus is that the Acuvue Advance are slightly more expensive than the Acuvue 2 lenses. So for the extra few dollars which would eventually add up over the months, I expected something with better fluid retention and something more comfortable than the Acuvue 2 lenses that I was wearing. So, did the Acuvue Advance live up to their promises?
-Comfort-
*When I placed the Acuvue Advance contact lenses in my eyes, they felt just like the Acuvue 2 lenses. They weren't noticably more comfortable. So if you have very sensitive eyes, then these can be pretty good lenses for you. I noticed that the Acuvue lenses are considerably more comfortable than a lot of other contact lenses on the market such as those from Biomedic and some other brands.
*However, I'm only basing this comfort on what the lenses feel like when they are well lubricated. When it comes down to fluid retention and other factors, the Acuvue Advance are another story.
-Fluid Retention-
*So, are the Acuvue Advance lenses the types that you can wear from early morning to late at night? Definitely not. For a few hours they are quite comfortable, but they appear to lose lubrication quickly after that. This shouldn't be a problem if you carry eye drops with you where you can remove your contacts and re-instert them. However, they seemed to become dryer much quicker than my Acuvue 2 lenses. Those would go on for hours longer while the Acuvue Advance lenses seemed to become extremely dry. This was my major complaint with the Acuvue Advance lenses. I would definitely have to carry eye drops or extra saline solution with them and almost always use it if I were up at let's say 8AM and done by 9PM. I wouldn't have to worry about that with Acuvue 2 lenses. Sure some days are better than others, but the Acuvue Advance just didn't seem to stack up to having better fluid retention in comparison to the Acuvue 2 lenses.
-Durability-
*The Acuvue Advance are pretty soft lenses and seem to be pretty comparable to the Acuvue 2 lenses regarding the quality. They are tough to break so they should be able to last you more than two weeks without tearing or any problems. So if you're the kind of person who likes to wear lenses beyond their prescribed time of usage, then these should prove to be pretty satisfactory. Even though the Acuvue lenses are so soft and thin, they don't tear or break easily which is pretty good.
-Ease of Use-
*If you're not familiar with contact lenses or just starting out, they have "123" written on them if you point them up to the light. This lets you make sure that you're putting them in correctly. If you place them up towards the light and see "321", you know that the lense is inside out. So for beginners, these would prove to be good lenses.
-The Verdict-
*While the Acuvue Advance are comfortable, they tend to lose fluids very quickly. This can lead to extreme discomfort and distorted vision. I don't know if it was just me or something, but the Acuvue Advance seemed to lose fluids much more quickly than the Acuvue 2's. Since there was no noticable improvement in comfort, less fluid retention, and are slightly more expensive compared to the Acuvue 2's, the cheaper and older Acuvue 2 lenses seem to be a better fit all together. But be sure to try out both, because everyone is different!
**OTHER CONTACT LENSES I HAVE USED**
Acuvue Oasys
Acuvue 2
Biocompatibles Proclear Compatibles
Ocular Sciences Biomedics 55 Premier
**CONTACT LENS SOLUTIONS I HAVE USED**
CIBA Vision Clear Care
**OTHER CONTACT LENS PRODUCTS**
Alcon Opti Free Supraclens Daily Protein Remover
Recommended:
No
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soupcraze
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Member: Soup Enthusiast
Location: Chicago, Illinois
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