This handsome, smooth-talking young man is very knowledgeable about his products.
But in my experience, two issues stood out:
First, the prices are extremely high — I paid over $700 for two non-prescription clip-on lenses.
Second, when one of the products didn’t meet my expectations, their proposed solution required me to spend even more money.
Here is how it unfolded with The Spectacle Factory:
Note: I will post the full email exchange between Rob and me at this
link. But for those who prefer a quick summary, here’s an overview of what happened:
I ordered two sets of clip-on lenses for my EvenRealities subtitle glasses. One pair — a reflective tint — was satisfactory. The second pair, however, was supposed to filter out blue light for watching TV late at night before bed. They arrived completely clear. I tested them using two different blue light sources, and the blue light passed right through — no noticeable filtering at all.
When I reported this to Rob, he replied that the lenses were “the best available,” but acknowledged that they filter less than 40% of blue light. I already owned non-clip-on blue-light glasses that block nearly all visible blue light, so this was obviously not what I expected, needed, or wanted..
I told Rob I was not satisfied and requested a return shipping label so I could send them back and exchange them for a lens that actually filters most of the blue light. As you'll see in the
transcript, Rob went silent for periods of time and ignored follow-up emails.
Eventually, Rob said he could offer a different lens that might filter more blue light, but it would cost me more — on top of what I had already paid. While he maintained that the original lens was “the best available,” it clearly didn’t meet my needs. I was looking for something that would block
most blue light, not just
up to 40%. Paying extra to fix what I believe was a mismatch between the product and my request was not acceptable.
What I ordered were both
Zeiss lenses from Spectacle Factory. The Zeiss BlueGuard clip-ons I received may technically reduce a fraction of blue light, but less than 40% reduction is not what a reasonable customer would expect when asking for blue light–blocking lenses for nighttime use. e.g. more than 60% of the blue light gets through!
This site serves as a
review of Spectacle Factory customer service — not to attack Rob, or anyone, but to share a documented customer experience that others may want to consider before placing an order. I wrote Rob one last time before creating this website, telling him I was going to build a website to share my bad experience. Instead of giving better customer support he said, "I cannot stop you" but in fact, he could have stopped me by simply taking the (non-prescription glasses) back.
After months of back-and-forth and repeated follow-up on my end, it became clear that I was not going to receive fair treatment or customer satisfaction.
As a dissatisfied customer in the U.S. dealing with a company based in the U.K. that refuses to be accountable or responsible, I created this website to get the word out. Any comment I might leave on their YouTube videos can be deleted — and further comments blocked. But here, I can share my experience freely, and there is nothing they can do to silence it. It seems they have forgotten (or never knew) that it takes years to earn a good business reputation but only a short time to tear it down. I hope this helps others make an informed decision and they avoid the regret of placing an order with The Spectacle Factory.
This wasn’t just about a $258 refund — it was about standing up for consumer integrity when polite, private efforts failed.
On Yelp, Janet H from Penwortham, UK said:
Sales is all this company is about — how much money they can extract! All very friendly when you go in, but uncaring regarding your eyes and the glasses they sell you. Nothing gets sorted out once your money has been parted from your bank account.
And Anne S from San Francisco, CA wrote:
Glasses are not correct for my eyes.
They would not accept this and said I had to get used to them!?
Started over again with an alternative optician.
The glasses were confirmed as not right for me.
They refused to give me a refund of £1,000.00 for the 2 pairs bought which are of no use to me.
The small lady optician was rude.
Now that I’ve seen several negative reviews of The Spectacle Factory on Yelp and other review sites, I realize I should have done more research before placing my order. Hopefully this review helps others do just that — and avoid the experience I went through.
