Gamma Ray FlexLite Review

Computer glasses that block blue light can be a useful product to reduce eye strain, but it’s often difficult to justify the price for glasses that may be uncomfortable or ineffective. The Gamma Ray FlexLites are priced so reasonably that anyone can give them a try. They don’t block much blue light, but they do come with an anti-reflective coating and a magnification feature at no additional cost. We put them to the test to see how they fared during the workday and at home.

The first thing we noticed when trying on these glasses was the flexibility of the frames. They have a lot of slack in the arms, so they open up wide enough to sit comfortably without squeezing your head or seeming like they’re about to break when flexed. That said, the build quality feels about as cheap as you can expect from such inexpensive glasses. 

The clear, rectangular lenses and lightweight black frames look like regular prescription glasses or reading glasses. The lens format isn’t very wide, so the frames are visible in your field of view the entire time you are wearing them. As someone who doesn’t normally wear glasses, we found it to be a little intrusive.

FlexLite glasses have clear anti-reflective lenses, so they don’t stand out like yellow and amber-tinted glasses do. There is no specific claim made as to the amount of blue light they block. Blue light is light transmitted at wavelengths under 500nm wavelengths (nanometers, a measure of the wavelength of electromagnetic radiation), down to around 380nm when light becomes visibly violet. Glasses without much tint block a lot of blue light at the lower end up the spectrum, but not as much at the greater wavelengths emitted by computer monitors.

Compared to other glasses, we would estimate that they block 20 percent of blue light or less. White computer programs appear slightly off-white but are not affected enough to prove distracting.

These glasses don’t offer prescription options, which isn’t surprising considering their low price point. Our test pair had no magnification, but there are magnification options up to +2.00. The company suggests using a magnification that is half of what you normally use for reading glasses.

We wore FlexLite glasses while using Google Docs to work on a few short projects. The glasses were comfortable throughout testing. Colors were not appreciably different with or without them on. As a consequence, we didn’t notice much improvement in eye strain or sleep. We mostly used computers and screens in the evening when sleep was most disrupted by blue light, so overall these glasses do a poor job of filtering it.

At just under $20 on Amazon, Gamma Ray Optics FlexLite glasses are as inexpensive as you can get. They’re about the price of reading glasses you could buy in a grocery store. Magnification can reduce eye strain, but blue light disrupts circadian rhythm, a vital element of the sleep cycle which can be impacted by light. Without stronger blue light filtration, the glasses aren’t going to make a big difference to your sleep quality.

The Prospek Dynamic glasses are a strong contender if the professional appearance of clear lenses appeals to you. Claiming to block 50 percent of blue light, they do seem to be an improvement over FlexLite glasses. Standard lenses or magnification up to +3.00 costs around $40, making the Prospek blue light blocking glasses well-priced at around $45-50. 

If blocking blue light is more important to you than magnification, Gunnar Optiks Intercepts are also a great choice. At around $45-70 depending on where you purchase them, these glasses are a little more expensive but with significantly improved blue light protection. These are also a better option if you need prescription lenses.