If you’re one of those people who tells boring yarns of how great the 1980s were and how everything’s been shit ever since, you probably had a pair of Wayfarers.
These top-class sunnies were the dog’s bollocks for posers who thought the specs made them look hard-edged and cool.
That situation was mostly brought about by Ray Ban paying $50,000 to a promotions company which specialised in getting the glasses worn in movies like The Blues Brothers and the one good movie Tom Cruise ever did, Risky Business. It was the 1980s, so $50K was a lot of money back then – not the price of a tank of premium unleaded like it is today (FFS).
As happens with most fashion items, everyone woke up one day and decided Wayfarers were for wankers and started wearing Oakley instead. Ray Ban’s parent company in Italy chucked its toys out of the cot, sold Ray Ban and moved on.
Now Ray Ban’s current owner has decided the go is to put cameras in the frames. Instead of everyone looking at you, everyone can look at whatever you look at.
There’s all kinds of high-tech gadgetry built in. Bluetooth naturally, speakers, a 5MP camera, a Facebook app and a whole heap more.
Dark, polarised lenses, of course. We nearly forgot to mention those.
Grab a pair from the nearest OPSM or Myer and expect to pay $449.
No. You don’t need a pair of prescription Wayfarers. That’s really the price.