Oakley Encoder sunglasses

The Oakley Encoder sunglasses look absolutely epic with their flared-edge lens – there to add stiffness – and fit securely and comfortably with a wide range of helmets. The lens clarity is up to Oakley's usual high standards, but that flared edge causes distortion which has been 'solved' with a fairly sizeable nose rubber. And then there's the price – you're going to have to really like the looks...

The Oakley Encoder is designed for 'multiple sport categories' that might involve helmets, comes in eight lens/colour combinations, and borrows some design cues from the Kato – though toned back a bit so these don't look quite so radical.

Frameless glasses can be beneficial for cycling – for example, the Oakley Flight Jackets do away with the upper portion of the frame to give an unobstructed view when looking up, which is useful in an aero position with your head down. Other glasses such as the Oakley EVZero Blades do away with nearly all of the frame, but this can lead to the glasses feeling flexible and fragile; not great for retention on the head.

The Encoder's solution is the flared top edge, and as far as rigidity is concerned it's an excellent solution. The Encoders don't feel at all fragile and hold the head well.

However, as far as visibility is concerned it's just like having a frame, which sort of makes it pointless (other that for aesthetics, which for the record I am a big fan of). It actually results in similar field of view (at least upwards) as the ever-popular Oakley Radars. Just don't expect the usual benefits of frameless glasses in this area.

The rubbery nose and earpieces are made from 'Unobtainium,' and hold the glasses secure even in the sweatiest of conditions. I found the low profile temple areas work well with a variety of helmets, while the arms are shorter than some and less likely to collide with helmets behind the ears.

Despite curving right around the sides of your face, the lens hardly distorts at all across the field of view. and where the arms mount is very high so you really have to strain your eyes to even catch a glimpse of them.

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The flared edge around the nosepiece would create distortion, but has been blocked out by the larger-than-usual nosepiece rubber. It doesn't impact on visibility too much, but it's definitely not a positive as it encroaches into the centre of vision.

The optics themselves are up to Oakley's usual high standards. Prizm lenses boost contrast and colours and, as mentioned earlier, there are eight to choose from, each with a different light transmission profile to suit a wide range of conditions.

We tested the Prizm Sapphire lens which has 12% VLT (Visible Light Transmission) tint – actually quite dark for typical UK riding with our abundance of shady hedgerows – so I'd personally go for the Prizm Road or even Prizm Trail lens with 20% or 35% VLT respectively. None of the lens options change the price.

Value

At £204 these are more expensive than many alternatives, including other glasses from Oakley. For example, all of the Oakleys I mentioned earlier are cheaper: the Flight Jackets are £194, the EVZero Blades are £149, the Radar EVs are £167, and the Sutros are £140. The fact is, from a functionality point of view the Encoders offer no real benefit over any of them.

However, they certainly aren't alone at this price. The Roka GP-1Xs now cost £210, while the Roka Matadors our tester George really liked are £215. As with those the Encoders don't include a spare lens, but you do at least get a hard case with the Oakleys.

Overall

This is an interesting set of sunnies and the flared lens edge looks absolutely brilliant while stiffening them up – but it also defeats the point of them being frameless. The cost is quite hard to swallow too, because while the lens clarity, fit and comfort are great, they're not really any better than with cheaper rivals even from Oakley itself.

Verdict

Striking looks, great lenses and very comfy with helmets, but expensive – and no better than their own cheaper stablemates