Last month, Jenn buckled under the influence of her Facebook timeline, and bought Bite toothpaste bits. Around the same time, I also succumbed to the pressure of my own Facebook timeline and decided to try Hubble Contact Lenses.
I’ve used contact lenses for about 28 years. In all those years, I’ve been a happy contact wearer (unless it’s allergy season). I’ve worn a few different brands, and none of them have given me grief. My eyes, it seems, aren’t picky.
DISCLAIMER: I’m not getting paid to write this. I paid for these contacts with my own money. This is not a sponsored post. Also, I am not an eye doctor. Consult your eye doctor.
What: Hubble Contacts
Hubble contacts are marketed as “The More Affordable Daily Contact Lens.” If the Facebook Algorithm chose you for targeting, you’ve probably seen that you can get a 15 day supply for one dollar. I’m notoriously cheap, and this caught my eye. So to speak. Here is the offer:
So, basically it’s a subscription service for contact lenses. It’s very easy, all you do is give them your shipping address, your credit card info, and your contact lens prescription. They send out the first shipment (after verifying your prescription with your optometrist – more on that later…) for the 15-day trial. Then, they automatically ship more contacts once a month, or less frequently if you don’t go through them very quickly.
Why?
I’m terrible at calling and ordering things. An automatic shipment of something I regularly use simplifies my life. Plus, they’re a bargain.
The Results:
Shipping was fast, and I received my first box. The aesthetic is cute and they ship in 100% recyclable boxes. So, that’s aces.
I guess I should talk about how I wear contacts. I don’t wear them every day, and when do wear them, I never wear them for more than eight hours. I absolutely never, ever, EVER sleep in them. Maybe this is why I don’t generally have trouble with my eyes or my contacts. I don’t know. It works for me.
So, the Hubbles were great. I liked that each lens had a little “hub” written along the edge of the lens so that when it sits on the end of your finger if you can read it, you know the lens isn’t inside out. A huge time saver.
They didn’t feel like ANYTHING. I could see great. The price was right. I loved them.
And yet, I canceled my subscription today.
Why?
Hubble contacts are made of a material that doesn’t allow much oxygen permeability. Your eyes need to breathe, yo.
The contacts sold by Hubble are made from a material called Methafilcon A. This material was sold in the 1980s – since then, better materials have been developed. Old plastics like this do not have good oxygen permeability (Dk). Why is this important? Oxygen diffusion through the contact lens is important because the cornea (the surface of the eye upon which the contact lens rests) doesn’t normally get oxygen from the blood like other body tissues – it relies on oxygen from the atmosphere. The cornea requires that contact lenses have a Dk of at least 24 to avoid oxygen deprivation and swelling. Compare these Dk values:
- Dailies Total One Dk =140
- Acuvue Oasys Daily Dk =103
- Acuvue TrueEye Dk =100
- Clariti One Day Dk =60
- Biotrue One Day Dk =42
- Hubble Dk = 18
Needless to say, there are many healthier choices out there.
But, I thought, “well…they checked with my eye doctor before they filled the prescription. They say so right on the website…”
But did they verify my prescription with my eye doctor? DID THEY?
I called my eye doctor’s office and asked the receptionist what happens if they’re contacted from outside companies regarding contact lens orders. Do they note that in our files? She said yes. Fantastic.
I asked her to pull my file. “It should have been pretty recently. Do you have a note saying you were contacted by Hubble to verify my contact lens prescription?” I asked. “Nope. Nothing,” she replied.
Nothing in my file. Further, she told me that they had never been contacted by Hubble ever for any clients.
So there’s that.
To sum up:
The contacts feel great! But between the super low Dk value and the fact that they never verified my contact prescription with eye doctor like they said they would, I’m not happy.
The cancellation process was easy, but I had to actually call and talk to a person, which was annoying.
Would I recommend Hubble contacts?
Nope.
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