Aquasphere Kaimen Exo Goggles
22nd Apr 2015
To my mind there are really only two things that matter with a pair of goggles: do they keep the water out, and do they stay mist free. The Kaimen Exo does both with bells on. I swim once a week at an outdoor lido so the temperature differential is much higher than in your average indoor pool. It can be a few degrees above freeing above the water level when you factor in wind chill, and heated to 27 degrees in the water, and they have yet to show any sign of fogging or letting water in. They are traditional goggles in that they have separate cups for each eye rather than the more scuba-mask like variant that are now popular, especially amongst kids. The cups are relatively small, but obviously big enough to comfortably cover each eye. The manufacturers blurb states that they have some clever patented curved lens which gives a 180 degree view. Wikipedia state that us humans have almost 180 degrees as our natural field of view, so it seems that Aquasphere have somehow extended this to give us a little extra via clever optics. This does seem to make looking around whilst open water swimming a little easier, especially combined with the clear lenses and lack of fogging. They come with their own carry case and I have learned the hard way to always store them in the case in order to protect the lenses from scratching, though they are treated with anti-scratch stuff of course. Adjusting them to fit is simple enough and a far, far cry from the goggles of my youth which more often than not resulted in a twanged cheek! For those with a latex allergy you'll be pleased to hear that they don't contain any of the stuff. And last, but not least, if you're swimming towards the setting sun, or like a good bit of Old English back stroke during the middle of the day, the lenses are 100% UVA and UVB protected, though on my model there isn't any tinting. They retail at £22.99 which is a fair price for a decent quality pair of goggles in my book.
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