EnChroma Cx-65 Indoor/Computer Glasses

So. The day I received my EnChroma glasses has come and gone. I have been wearing them now a couple days and felt it was time to report on their effectiveness. Now, keep in mind that it is early Spring and the days have not been consistently warm. That means there are not a lot of spectacular colors from burgeoning flora outside. Seeing color outdoors is crucial for me, even though these particular glasses are made for indoor use. However, as long as there is not a lot of light, which according to the label can cause a "washout" in colors, it should not be a problem (it's not like I'm using them instead of sunglasses - EnChroma makes those too). That said, I primarily wanted these glasses for use at work and, mostly, the indoor climbing gym. At work I create multi-color stimuli for psychology experiments. Needless to say, seeing color at work would help me keep up with co-workers instead of waiting for someone else to catch a mistake brought about by my color confusion. Additionally, it doesn't hurt to be able to distinguish line- and bar-graph colors during those long lab meetings I attend (at some point pastel blue, pink, and purple will inevitably rear heads - ugh!). As for the climbing gym, being able to see color is essential for route finding. For some strange reason, route builders find it necessary to place orange and green routes over/beside one another. The same is true for purple/blue routes. This makes it really difficult to have confidence while climbing, especially if bouldering alone. Now that you know my reason for wanting the EnChroma Cx-65 glasses, I will tell you what I have learned since wearing them.

Immediate Impression

If you have watched the EnChroma video, you were probably struck by how emotional it was to watch color-blind people "see color" for the first time. I know I was! To me, the testimonials demonstrate what a world-changing experience it is to see a broader spectrum of colors in a way that is more enriched than my eyes can see on their own. While scanning written testimonials, I read about emotions, tears, and interpersonal connection. That is, a connection with other, color-seeing persons who use color to express emotions in a way I probably do not fully appreciate. I wanted that! So I anxiously awaited the arrival of my EnChroma glasses. Then, there they were, waiting on my doorstep freshly delivered by a pair of brown shorts in a box truck. I told my mom I would capture a video when I first put them on but my feelings in support of doing that were waning. I was afraid to disappoint her if they didn't work (I could tell she was anxious). - I say that because these glasses do not work for everyone. In fact, a good number of red/green color-blind folks are dichromats and these glasses won't help (there's too much overlap between red and green for them to distinguish a difference). You can read about how the glasses work here and their use of notch-filtering. - So I didn't video myself trying the glasses on for the first time. Instead, I texted some friends to let them know my glasses had arrived and surrounded myself with a digital support group. I tried to call my mom to share in the experience, but her phone was dead...

So, I eagerly unboxed the new glasses and slipped them onto my face. At first, the difference was too subtle to notice any changes. Everything was coated in a shade of blue/gray but not all that different. I went outside (it was sunny) and looked around. Nothing. Then the disappointment set it. I expected colors, emotions, interpersonal connection..... but no. I switched back and forth between the glasses and my bare eyes trying to detect any subtle difference. The sky was really blue and the grass was a richer green, but nothing popped. So I turned to walk back inside my house and then there is was. The hardwood floor was different. It was vibrant red. How had I never noticed before. I took the glasses off and, in the shimmer of the sun, it was brown. Maybe there was some orange but it was washed out. I quickly put the glasses back on and there I was, standing on planks of technicolor red. I scanned the room for more red and, subtly, there was more deep reds in the everyday objects I never really noticed before. Wow! I sent my first wave of texts to let friends know about my discovery. I'm sure I was way more excited than I could convey but I felt others had to know the world was full of color lest they miss it! I eventually talked to my mother to let her know the good news.

Later that day, I went to the mall. It was the only place I could think of that would host a cavalcade of colors that would allow me to test the glasses. At the food court I noticed the logo from Taco Bell. I never knew it was purple-ish. It had always looked strictly pink. And now it had a tinge of purple. Dare I say Magenta? It wasn't like magic and the difference wasn't grandiose. It was subtle but it was there. The longer I wore the glasses the better I became at identifying colors I couldn't previously distinguish.

          EnChroma Filter                            Normal                   

 Next stop, Bath and Body Works. This might not be the first place you think to go when you've got new "color-blind" glasses, but let me persuade you to think again. Right now, they have Spring color layouts that demonstrate great diversity in the color spectrum. I could nearly distinguish them all; a feat formerly unfathomable. I'm not saying the colors were, to me, as they were supposed to be or all that different from what I was seeing before. But, it was just different enough. Everything was more vibrant and rich and, most of all, I could contrast colors even if I didn't quite know what the colors were. The important thing was that it didn't look the same as other colors. For the first time I could contrast a wider variety of colors and with very little difficulty.

The most mind-blowing comparison I made was in a cosmetic shop when looking at nail polish. There was a spectrum of colors ranging from pink to purple. On either side was a shade of each color and, when I held them side-by-side, I couldn't tell apart. Then I put the glasses on... Boom! The two looked different. I could even tell which was pink and which was purple. Somehow the purple looked more blue... or maybe the pink looked more red. Maybe both! I'm not sure about that but one thing was for certain - I could tell them apart. I took a picture with my phone with and without the glasses covering the aperture. I posted the picture above. I'm not so sure this difference is as obvious or enlightening for normal color-seeing folks, but hopefully those with red-green color deficiency will look in awe. I was so amazed by my new-found ability that I wanted to share it with the world... and here it is!

The Climbing Gym

Ok, so I had a great appreciation for the benefit provided by the glasses. They seemed to help, even if the world didn't exactly explode with new colors. My understanding is that the glasses don't enable you to see colors the way other normal functioning trichromats see color. Rather, it filters wavelengths of light that "crosstalk" into shorter wavelengths that are distinguishable by red-green color deficient people. This doesn't increase the amount of colors you can see but does adjust the color of objects so that you notice a difference where before there was none. Think of it as reclassifying sound frequency. If you adjust a 7 Hz sound to 12 Hz it can be heard by a person who is def for sounds between 5-10 Hz. 

Climbing-hold shadows

It's likely more complicated than that for the EnChroma glasses but I'm willing to bet the principle is the same. In short, wearing these glasses will not allow a person to see more colors. It allows a color deficient person to see differences in colors that were previously indistinguishable. Understanding this, I really hoped the glasses would improve my route-finding ability at the climbing gym. So, the next day I went climbing with my friend Kelly. She really didn't notice any differences when looking through the glasses, other than the blue/gray shade it made everything. On a side note, they totally fit her face better... - Sizing the glasses are hard since they're ordered online. It would be great if EnChroma designed a web-tool that enabled someone to get a feel for the fit of the glasses. They're really expensive to have no guarantee of fit and shipping back a pair due to dissatisfaction is time-consuming. - We talked about how they've helped me see color differences and, looking around the gym, a couple things popped. The Himalayan prayer flags were noticeably different. Strangely, the blue seemed more vibrant and I mislabeled it as purple. Kelly confirmed the color was blue which had me rethinking my confidence. The light in the gym isn't all that great and I was worried it wouldn't be adequate for the glasses. Shortly after, we started our first climb. The route was marked by orange handholds which wouldn't be a problem by itself but they were interspersed among green holds. Trouble ensued. After tying in and chalking up, I put on the glasses and I was on-belay. Reaching for the first few holds was difficult. It was dark and, with overhead lighting, the bottom of each climbing hold was shadowy. This was made worse by the slight tint on the glasses. A few holds later and I was still having problems. I looked down and the worn foot-holds lacked contrast from other holds. Luckily this improved as I climbed since I was rising nearer the overhead lighting. Afterward, I had a moment to reflect. I think the glasses actually impaired my vision in the low-lighting environment. It definitely wasn't an improvement. I tried another route with the same color configuration (orange/green is easily found interspersed at my gym). The lighting was a little better in a new location but still not sufficient to contrast the colors. In the end I realized the glasses really were not going to help in this capacity. I was hopeful but it just wasn't in the cards. 

In Summary

Upon reflection I think the glasses are great! They have their limitations (price being one of them!). I think they are advertised correctly and that they work best indoors and with computer screens. I also think they're good to use outside so long as the lighting isn't too bright. Oh, and they're definitely not sunglasses, so don't mistake them for having any sun protection (says so on the box). I think the greatest utility of the glasses will come at work since the glasses definitely help me distinguish colors better. And I am am very optimistic about what I might see in the future. Not only when the flowers bloom and Spring is in full season but also later; after Summer concedes it's long days and warm nights for Fall's beautiful foliage. Fall has always been hard for me. While I love the festivities and comfort feelings of Fall, I simply do not appreciate it's colors. I hope that changes. For the first time I have hope. Fingers crossed that I get to experience the colorful side of Fall.