Smith Discord Sunglasses Review
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Price: $209
Fit: Medium Sized Face
Sunglasses are one of those pieces of gear that we get so much use out of, yet they can sometimes be hard to generalize in a product review. From one face to the next, there are dozens, if not hundreds of subtle changes that can change the way a pair of shades sit and look on your face. While there are a number of reasons to try a pair of sunglasses on before you buy, there are also a number of reasons to do your research before you try on and buy. In this review, we’ll be going over a combination of performance and style aspects of the Smith Discord Sunglasses to help you along with your purchase decision.
Smith Chromapop Lens
For many of you, Smith Chromapop is not a new term by now. This lens technology came out about a year ago and we were one of the first to try out and review the lens. For our initial write up, check out the Smith Evolve Dover ChromaPop Review and more recent the Smith Wayward Review.
In short, the Smith ChromaPop Lenses are polarized to reduce or eliminate glare, they have amazing clarity, and provide high contrast. Whether you’re fishing, mountain biking, skiing, trail running, or participating in another activity, the benefits of glare reduction, amazing clarity, and high contract between objects can make a good day into a great day.
Testing Conditions
Smith Discord with ChromaPop in Action
For testing conditions, I had over a hundred days out in the Smith Discord Sunglasses skiing, trail running, hiking, mountain biking, and driving. What I found most impressive when testing the Smith Discord sunglasses is the clarity and the ability to see definition in what you’re looking at. When wearing the ChromaPop lenses for extended periods of time, you take for granted the clarity these lenses provide. Instead of seeing a field of wild flowers that blend together or a white water river as one, you’re easily able to pick out each flower pedal and each splash of a wave against a rock.
Smith Discord Sunglasses
Smith Discord Sunglasses Side View
The Smith Discord is a great blend between casual and sport for those that want one sunglass that can do everything. Keep in mind it’s not going to perform as well as a pure sport sunglass, but for everyday use, it gets the job done. The one challenge that I’ve run into with the sunglasses is that the frames of the Smith Discord tend to hold in moisture and the lenses fog up on high exertion activities such as running races, skinning uphill while backcountry skiing, or climbing a steep hill on a road or mountain bike. To get rid of the fog in the lenses, I found that moving the frames a little down your nose allows for enough air to get in and clear out the fog.
To help keep the sun and glare from getting in from the side, the arms on the Smith Discord Sunglasses are a little wide which is provides both functionality and styling.
Smith Discord Sunglasses at the beach
To keep the Smith Discord sunglasses on your face during activity, they have rubber grips on the arms and nose bridge. This is a must in a pair of sport sunglasses in my humble opinion. Without the rubber grippers, sunglasses can easily fall of your face if you’re looking down or if you swing your head around too fast. To lock the arms in place, there is a hinge that locks out as you extend it all the way out. This is good for storage of your sunglasses, but I don’t find any performance benefits of this particular function.
Downsides
The one downside to the Smith Discord is that I find the outer coating is starting to get rough. According to the people at Smith, some people have skin types that contain oils that don’t blend well with the coatings on the sunglasses. This is the 2nd pair of Smith sunglasses this has happen. As I often review a lot of sunglasses, I didn’t take advantage of the Smith Warranty Policy, but for those who would, Smith has an excellent lifetime warranty.
Final Thoughts
The Smith Discord Sunglasses have been a go-to sunglass for me for pretty much any and every activity. I am happy to give this sunglass two thumbs of for both functionality as well as fashion. For more information, please visit SmithOptics.com.
