New sunglasses from Oakley: Do the Sphera have what it takes to become a classic?

There were times when you HAD to wear Oakley sunglasses, ok, Rudy Project also worked, a bit. In the meantime, diversification has struck, bikers wear POC, Uvex, Bliz, 100%, Julbo... or another brand and the glasses all look chic with their current huge lenses. Rrrring ring, the 90s have called...

With the latest Oakley sunglasses models, Sphaera and BiSphaera, new material comes from the head stylist himself, so to speak. The glasses naturally combine the latest technology in the lenses (the already well-known Oakley Prizm technology) with a very unique design. Look, look at these temples!

Oakley: Sphera with the largest field of vision to date

The two new models are similar in name, design and technology. The BiSphera has two separate lenses, making it suitable for spectacle wearers who can purchase prescription lenses. According to Oakley, however, the main selling point of the eyewear duo is the largest field of vision to date. More glass is not possible?

However, the Californians promise that the huge field of vision of Oakley sunglasses does not result in any additional weight. The frame should sit "practically weightlessly" on the nose so that you can almost "forget" it. Unfortunately, the manufacturer does not specify a specific weight. However, the EVZERO sunglasses from Oakley were already very light at 23 grams.

At least there are already dimensions for the standardised size L:

• Glass height: 50.4 mm
• Frame width: 134.2 mm
• Temple length: 130 mm

>> For comparison, here are 6 pairs of self-tinting sunglasses from last summer

Oakley Sphera: Cooperation with Team Oakley athletes

Oakley brought its athletes on board for the development of the new sunglasses: Loana Lecomte, Mark Cavendish from the cycling department, as well as Fred Kerley (American track and field star), Francisco Lindor (baseball), Dylan Fratelli (golf) and others.

"Excellent peripheral vision is crucial for top performance, especially in the heat of battle, where an unrestricted field of vision is crucial for victory" - French cross country and mountain bike star Loana Lecomte is quoted as saying.

What are the technical features of the new Oakley Sphera?

From a technical point of view, the Sphera sunglasses actually have the familiar ingredients of the current Oakley models. In addition to the Prizm technology in the lenses, which enables better contrast thanks to different filters for different sports, the frame is made of O-Matter, which is very light. The non-slip Unobtainium nose pads are also back on board the Sphera. What is new is the shape and, according to the manufacturer, the particularly large field of vision.

The double-lens BiSphaera sunglasses, based on the popular Flak 2.0 XL model, have a narrower cut and are therefore ideal for sports where wind and dirt protection for the eyes is not so prominent, such as running or golf. The Oakley BiSphera is also available with either Prizm lenses or Oakley's own prescription lenses.

Virtual fitting on the Oakley website

Also not 100% new, but still a very good help with the question: "Can I wear this?" - the virtual try-on from Oakley. In the manufacturer's online shop, you can use your own webcam/selfiecam on your mobile phone by clicking on "Try on" and confirming access a few times, and the respective model is graphically - and quite realistically - placed on your nose.

Oakley Sphaera and BiSphaera are now available at Oakley.com, selected Oakley shops and retailers. Whether they have what it takes to become another design classic remains to be seen. We will be testing them in the near future and will present the results here.