Above: Oakley Prizm React. Photo: Danny Burrows.

Remember how stoked we all were when changing your goggle lens became so easy? Just pop it off and change it to another one, and you’re all good for riding when the light changes from clear to flat. Well, how many of us actually brings that extra pair of lenses with us up the hill or makes the effort to check the weather before we get up? The effort of carrying that extra lens around seems to be something we haven’t been able to overcome yet. So, to make things even easier now, Oakley is launching their Prizm React goggle technology next season – the lens with three different tint settings.

“The lens with three different tint settings”

So how does it work? A basic grey lens is used as the base for the Prizm React, grey being the most neutral colour to use in order for a technology like this to work in the best possible way. The shade of grey changes from light grey, with 30% light compression, to medium grey, with 15% light compression, all the way to the dark grey one, with only 10% light compression. Switching from light to dark is made easy too, and even glove friendly. There are two buttons on each side of the goggle, and once you press them, they vibrate according to what tint they’re at. If you’re at the very lightest shade the goggles will only vibrate once, when you switch to medium it vibrates twice, and for the darkest tint you’ll get three vibrations. Just remember that the button on the left-hand side stands for light, and you won’t be vibrating back and forth trying to find the right tint for your goggles.

“Once you’re passed the initial excitement of pressing the buttons back and forth, you can go for a week without charging the goggles”

The battery should last up to 300 clicks, so once you’re passed the initial excitement of pressing the buttons back and forth, you can go for a week without charging the goggles. They’re easy to charge as well, using a micro USB cable that you plug into the waterproof USB port on the right side of inner frame, next to the power button. Don’t forget to turn them off though! However, if you do forget, and run out of battery, the lens doesn’t just give up on you and go all black, it goes back to the lightest tint, so you’ll still be able find your way down the mountain. Also, the electronics of Prizm React are integrated into the frame, so you don’t need to worry about having to shred around with a pair of goggles that will rub you from your balance.