Torrent is a street/sport hybrid with a lot going for it—particularly a low price tag. The star of its little show is a photchromic lens with impressive range. Called the Light Night Fototec lens, it starts the day at 56% visible light transmission—lighter than most other mutable lenses—and darkens to a comfortable 16% in bright sunlight. As a street shade, it’s super lightweight (24 grams) so it can perch happily for hours at a time—not that I’d want to wear it that long, optically speaking. It also has broad though streamlined temples, and a dash of attitude. Sportier attributes include shatterproof polycarbonate lenses with ventilated corners to dissipate fog, and embedded rubber on the nosepiece and temple tips. The hybrid conceit starts to fall apart if you’re a mountain biker or trail runner—the full rim obscures downward vision, but Torrent doesn’t claim to be a specialist. Optical clarity is only fair, but so is the price. It’s an impressive piece of work if you’re not an optics zealot and need decent shades for a short hike or casual bike ride. Buy it: $62 Free Shipping at Zappos
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