Lens coatings

Hard coat

A hard coating is a clear layer applied to the lens surface to enhance scratch resistance. While it provides protection against minor abrasions, such as those from cleaning with a tissue, it should not be considered fully anti-scratch. We always recommend using a specialized glasses cleaning cloth to clean your lenses.

All thin lenses, as well as Transitions® and polarized tinted lenses, come with a standard scratch-resistant coating. Additionally, KODAK Clean&Clear lenses also include a built-in scratch-resistant coating

Anti-reflection – basic and super

Anti-reflection coatings, also known as AR or MAR, consist of multiple thin layers that significantly reduce glare from various wavelengths of light. By minimizing unwanted reflections on the lens surface, these coatings allow more light to pass through, enhancing clarity. This is particularly important for thin lenses, which reflect more light than standard lenses, which is why all our thinner lens packages include an anti-reflection coating as standard.

Advanced anti-reflection coatings, such as Lens Protect+, offer additional benefits, including water-repellent, grease-resistant, and anti-static properties. KODAK Clean&Clear lenses are designed to reduce halo effects—those rings around car headlights caused by glare during nighttime driving—improving visibility in challenging conditions.

Note that anti-reflection coatings can show smudges more easily than uncoated lenses, so it's important to clean them regularly with a soft glasses cleaning cloth.

Anti-static

Anti-static properties can be applied to lenses to help prevent dust and dirt from accumulating. This keeps the lenses clearer and cleaner for longer, and makes them easier to clean.

Certain lenses, such as KODAK Clean&Clear lenses, feature built-in anti-static properties that enhance dust and dirt resistance, resulting in a clearer and more comfortable viewing experience.

Water-repellent coat

A hydrophobic coating can be applied to the top layer of a lens to make it water-repellent. This coating causes moisture to bead up and slide off the lens, making them much easier and quicker to clean.

Oleophobic coat

Some lenses feature a built-in oleophobic coating that causes contaminants to repel and slide off the lens, reducing fingerprints and oily smudges. This makes it easier and quicker to remove any residual elements, resulting in a clearer and cleaner lens.

Blue-violet light lenses

Blue light lenses are equipped with a specially designed anti-reflection coating that filters out blue-violet light emitted by digital screens. If you spend significant time on a computer or use a tablet or mobile phone in the evening, this coating can make viewing more comfortable by reducing eye strain and enhancing contrast. Blue light lenses also offer protection from harmful UV rays and come with a built-in scratch-resistant coating.

Polarised tints

Polarized tints nearly eliminate reflected glare and block 100% of harmful UVA and UVB rays. They improve contrast and visual comfort by reducing sunlight reflections on water, wet roads, hazy conditions, and snow.

However, a downside to polarized lenses is that they may make it difficult to view displays on mobile phones or other handheld devices. This is because LCD screens are also polarized to reduce glare, and if the polarization of the screen is not aligned with that of the lenses, some or all of the display may be obscured.